


I wish I could stop staring at you

by uppu



Category: Portrait de la jeune fille en feu | Portrait of a Lady on Fire (2019)
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/F, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-18
Updated: 2020-12-12
Packaged: 2021-03-04 06:00:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 24
Words: 47,763
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24788890
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/uppu/pseuds/uppu
Summary: Marianne is a 16-year-old girl who is passionate about Volleyball. Things go for a toss when a new girl joins her school and threatens her spot on the team.
Relationships: Héloïse & Marianne (Portrait of a Lady on Fire), Héloïse/Marianne (Portrait of a Lady on Fire), Marianne & Sophie (Portrait of a Lady on Fire)
Comments: 81
Kudos: 209





	1. The Team

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first work ever. I think I'm a little scared lol.

Marianne checked her watch. 7:33. Practice started at 7:30. She was late again. She opened the gates to the court. Probably everyone was already there. She heard footsteps behind her. Maybe not everyone then. She guessed it was Sophie, the only other person who was always late. And she was right. The dark-haired girl with dark brown eyes stopped by her. She was just above Marianne's shoulder.

"Late again?" she jested Sophie.

"You don't say." Sophie muttered under her breath.

"After you." Marianne said and held the door open for her.

Coach Armand was already walking towards them.

"We're dead, we're dead." Sophie whispered.

"So what's your excuse today?" he chided.

"Mom was a little late in preparing the food, Sir." Sophie replied.

"Mine too, Sir." said Marianne sheepishly.

"I don't want to hear any excuses. Keep your bags down and start warming up."

"Yes Sir" they both replied. They put their bags down and hurried towards the court.

The warm-up consisted of running around the court 10 times and then loosening of the muscles. Their teammates were already running so they joined them.

"I'm keeping a count of your runs" the coach warned. Marianne looked down and smiled. She knew who it was meant for. She was always cutting corners.

After the warm-up, the team split up into pairs. Marianne and Sophie practised their drills together. Marianne was a smasher and Sophie was the Libero in the team. It kind of made sense for them to practice together. Also, they both had a good friendship with each other which helped.

They both started out with each forearm pass drill and then moved onto overhead passes. After about 20 minutes Marianne started smashing the ball.

"Keep your arms straight dammit." Marianne cursed as she watched the ball fly away from herself and a little farther away from Sophie. Sophie had to run a little to pick up the ball and pass it back to her.

Marianne's forearm pass was still weak according to her. She'd started three years ago when she was in 8th grade. The underarm pass was the first thing that she was taught and it was the most important. The key to perfection consisted of three steps. First, is to keep your hands straight and squat as low as possible. Second, is to make sure the ball hits right at the fleshy part of your forearms. Third, come up as you push the ball and guide it where you want it to go.

Sophie was better at it. But she'd been playing for about six years. Marianne remembered there was a time when she had been better but Sophie had covered the gap with immense hard work.

"Ah shittttt" Marianne yelled as she watched her smash hit Sophie's one arm and fly away across the court to the other side. It wasn't Sophie's fault at all. She hit the ball father from Sophie than she should have and Sophie had basically dived to retrieve it.

Marianne held her hand up with her fingers out indicating her teammate to stay where she was as she was just about the go towards the ball.

"No wait right there." said Sophie as she sprinted towards the ball in no time.

Marianne pressed her fingers into her palms in anger, making a tight fist. Now her smash sucked too. Brilliant.

She saw Sophie running towards her. She placed a hand on Marianne's shoulder. "Are you angry with me?" she asked.

"Quite the contrary, Soph" she said with a weak smile."I should be hitting it better. I'm not controlling it at all."

"Well, it's kind of my fault too. I should be expecting those kinds of balls and be ready for it. It's not that I'll be receiving the ball in my hands or something during the match."

"No. But I need to place the ball correctly too, right? Plus you're doing a great job with the supplies and setting of the ball. I wish I was as good as you" she said in a dejected voice.

"What are you even saying...I wish I was as good as you. Don't be so hard on yourself" she consoled and patted her back."Let's get some water."

"Sure. I'm really thirsty."

They started walking towards the other side of the net, walking on the side of the court in order to not interrupt their teammate's practice. Amelie and Annette were practising the overhead pass together with each on the other side of the net. They both were lifters who set the ball for their smashers. Amelie was their age while Annette was a year younger. Sylvie and Therese were practising together. They were both smashers and were two years younger than Marianne and Sophie were. There were a couple of other kids practising too, but Marianne didn't know them by name. They'd joined only a couple of days back.

They were filling the large shoes of Raymonde and Keira, thought Marianne. They were 2 years senior and had passed out this year. Raymonde was a Libero like Sophie and Kiera was their numero uno lifter. But now Annette was going to take her place. Marianne knew was as good as Kiera. But, she did have a good rapport with Annette and Amelie, which she did not share with Kiera. They had their differences. Actually Marianne avoided her as much as possible. She didn't exactly have good memories of interaction with her.

Marianne shrugged as this fragment of memory passed her. Sophie and she had reached the water station by now. Sophie picked up a blue water bottle. "This is yours right?"

"Yes. " she replied. Sophie threw the bottle and caught it with one hand. "Thank you."

Sophie smiled in response and picked up her own green metal bottle.

They both sipped in silence, closely watching the other girls practice.

"Sylvie and Therese have gotten so much more better than last year" Marianne remarked.

"I agree."

"Sylvie's smashes are much more stronger now. She's also started rotating her wrists better. Therese is much more confident of what she's doing."

Sophie nodded.

"Girls why are you not practising?" said a booming voice from behind them. They both jumped.

"We were really thirsty so we came to drink some water, Sir" Sophie replied without hesitation.

"Did I say that you could have water?"

"No Sir"

"Then why are you here?" he asked with a warning tone which basically meant not to answer back. And they both knew him long enough to know they shouldn't. So they both stood there in silence.

"You only get to practice for an hour and a half every day. Don't waste time chit-chatting. Go now." he commanded motioning with his hands.

"Yes Sir" both of them replied and rushed off towards the court.

"God that was close" Sophie said gleefully and both of them giggled.

"Next time we should keep a lookout. I almost forgot how strict he can be" Marianne remarked.

"Yes we should. I don't want to be the one doing frog jumps and duck walks for no reason"

"Me either" she confessed and both of them burst out laughing.

\---

Everyone was in the locker room, washing and changing into a new set of clothes. They were all getting ready for their respective classes.

"Look at my tum-tum," Sophie said squeezing her belly. She was standing in a bra and a short. In fact, all of them were. "All the junk I ate this vacation has been stored right here."

"And here" said Marianne pinching her hips. Sophie skipped away from her.

"Hey you can't do that!"

"I can't?" Marianne questioned and started poking her with her finger. Sophie was laughing madly.

"Stoppppp" she pleaded but was still smiling. Marianne gave her a cheeky smile.

"These girls are taking so lonnngg. When will they come out?" Sophie muttered under her breath.

"We'll just ask them," said Marianne and thumped on one of the doors. "How much longer Amelie? We all need to go to class."

"What's the time?" she heard from the other side of the door.

Marianne picked up her blue digital watch. It was a gift from her uncle. She had got it in 7th grade when she went to visit him. It was a kids edition watch. She still liked it though because it had a glowing light which was quite useful in the dark.

"9:28" she yelled "We have to leave in 15 minutes."

"But I just went in!"

"Fuck me."

"This whole place smells of sweat ughhh." Sophie grumbled.

Marianne spun around to face her. They had spent majority their lives being drenched in sweat in some or the other way and now Sophie was bothered by it. This was interesting. "And when did you start having a problem with it?" Marianne taunted.

"Ever since she started dating that Alex" said Annette jestingly.

They all burst into laughter. Marianne was snorting. Sophie couldn't help but go a little red. Annette punched Sophie's arm.

"Boys stink all the time! Do they not ever take a bath??" Marianne remarked."My whole class smells like sweat after recess.

"So when did you start having a problem with it?" Sophie made a sly jab.

They were all guffawing while holding their stomachs now. The door near them opened and a smiling Amelie came out. She gave Marianne a smile and punched her arm softly. It seemed she had heard their banter. Annette went inside the room unnoticed in the commotion. Marianne realised it only when she heard the door thud.

"Heyyyy there's a line!!" she yelled and banged on the door. The only reply she got was a laugh from the other side.

She checked the time on her watch. 9:36.

"Ah I'll just change outside" she announced.

She wrapped a towel around her waist. She slid down her underwear and changed it with the new one. She repeated the same for her bra by draping the towel across her shoulders. She then pulled on a pair of blue jeans and a plain red shirt. Sophie had followed her and did the same. She was wearing a navy blue shirt with white stripes and black jeans.

"What's your first lecture?" Sophie asked while putting on her sneakers.

"Physics." Marianne said strapping her watch.

"I have Maths."

"I love Math."

"I don't like it."

"And the professor won't like it if we are late for class." Amelie cut in. Sophie and Amelie had the same timetables. "We should go."

Marianne was finishing tying her shoelaces. "Yeah let's go." She put on her backpack and the bag with dirty clothes. She rotated her left arm and checked her watch. 9:42. Three minutes to class.

"Wait for a second," Marianne mentioned. She cleared her throat and yelled "It's 9:42 guys. Move move move. I do not want to get complaints about any of you being late for class." She then banged on Annette's door again."Annette, you're in charge of seeing if everyone is out on time. Amelie, Sophie and I are leaving."

"Gotcha." yelled Annette from behind the door.

Then the three of them exited the locker room with Marianne leading the way.


	2. The New Girl

Marianne barged into the lecture hall. She tried to spot Nicole in the class. Her eyes went to the second last corner seat in the classroom where they usually sat. And she was right there like always. Then was an empty chair near her. She made her way across the class. She didn't even look up to see anyone. All eyes would be on her anyway. She threw her bags down near the seat and quickly sat down. Marianne looked at Nicole and acknowledged her. Nicole waved at her in response.

Nicole was slightly taller than her. She had wavy hair which fell till her shoulders, just like herself. Her eyes were big and dark brown, full of curiosity. 

Marianne took some time to catch her breath. The rush in her body which had built up during practice took some time to settle down. Her seat was near the window. The chirping of birds made her look outside. There was a canopy of trees over the school while sheltered these small creatures. The light was scattered due to dust particles in the air. It was called the Tyndall effect, she remembered. They had been taught that in class yesterday. Class! She should be paying attention. She quickly snapped out of her daydreaming. 

She bent down to her bags and sifted through her notebooks. She pulled out one that had 'Physics' written on top. It had all the notes of the previous lecture. She ran through the pages and opened the page which had a few notes covering half the page. Now she just needed a pen. She bent down again to check her side pocket. 

"Eh where is my pen?" she thought when she couldn't find it. She dived into the other pocket but she couldn't find it there either. "I literally just put it here" she cursed under her breath. She picked up her bag and started rummaging through it. It was nowhere to be found. She usually kept extras.

Marianne gave up after a while. She'd just borrow it from Nicole. She poked Nicole twice with her finger.

"What?" she asked in an irritated tone. 

"I need a pen."

"I only have one."

"Don't you have more?"

"It's funny you think that I do." Nicole chuckled.

"True." said Marianne grinning.

Marianne turned around to ask the person behind her to lend her one. 

"Do you have an extra pen?" she asked politely.

"No" said the girl.

Marianne pursed her lips. "Okay" she replied and turned around to ask someone else.

"But I do have a pencil" said the voice from behind her.

Marianne turned around again. The girl was already holding up her pencil. 

"That should do. Thanks a lot," she said and smiled at her. Her hazel-green eyes caught a pair of bluish-grey ones. One of her eyes was shining as the sun irradiated her face. One was fire and one was ice. She could feel them pierce through her. Marianne felt a shiver go down her spine. It was the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen. She was probably staring at her for eternity because a voice said...

"Are you going to take it or what?"

This caused Marianne to break her gaze abruptly. She took the pen hurriedly and gave her a flat smile. She quickly turned around again. It took a moment for Marianne to process what she had just witnessed. Something inside her wanted to turn again a look at her. But she didn't. She looked straight upfront and tried focusing on her lecture. But it was quite useless. The lecture sounding completely uninteresting to her didn't help either. 

The eagerness to look was steadily building up inside her. She started twisting her pencil around her fingers. It wasn't helping at all. She started pattering her feet on the floor. That didn't work either. Unable to control anymore she turned her face halfway so that she could peek at her from the corner of her eye. She prayed the girl wouldn't notice her.

Thankfully she was taking notes and didn't notice Marianne stealing a glance. Marianne noticed her hair was wavy and honey blonde. It was put up in a high ponytail. Soft curls were falling on her face. She was writing something down furiously. The girl suddenly looked up. Marianne didn't wait to make eye contact again. She quickly turned towards the board. Her chair made a screeching sound as she did so. Now all eyes were on her.

Marianne gulped and sat with a straight face. Everyone eventually turned away. A few seconds later something hit her on the side of her neck and fell down on the floor. It was a chit. She bent down, picked it up from the floor and opened it. _What is wrong with you?? Can you please stop moving and not disturb the class!!_

Judging from the tone of the note she guessed it must from Nicole. She looked over at her to apologise but Nicole was already lost in the class discussion. Marianne got herself to focus and pay attention to the lecture. 

\---

The remainder of the lecture went by peacefully with almost no interruption except a few students asking their doubts. Marianne didn't understand much which was mostly because she hadn't come prepared. 

"Students with doubts can clear it in my cabin in my office hours" the professor declared and left the room.

Marianne stayed in her seat while she watched the class empty out. Nicole didn't move either. Marianne was tapping the pencil on her head. She was quite aware that the blonde girl hadn't left either. She turned around to give the girl her pencil back. 

The blonde was putting her books in her bag. Marianne watched her patiently as she did. She could feel her body shake a little. The blonde maybe intimidated her a bit. Marianne was never intimidated by anyone. This was weird. 

"This girl is taking too long." she thought to herself. Marianne kept the pencil with a thud atop the blue-eyed girl's desk to grab her attention.

The girl looked up hardly flinching. "Keep it," she said unwaveringly. Her blue eyes were as calm like the sea on a pleasant sunny morning. Marianne could have got lost in them. But she had more important matters at hand. She had to return the pencil.

"But it's yours." Marianne declared.

"Give it back to me tomorrow," she said and flung her bag on her right shoulder and left the room. Marianne noticed the way she walked out. Her arms were straight which she swung around her. Her shoulders had an expression of their own. Some people would have thought it odd. Marianne thought it reeked of confidence. 

Marianne picked up the pencil and began inspecting. She wondered why she didn't do it before. It was black and sleek with a straight gold line on it. Also, it was a little heavy. No wonder it balanced so well in her hands. The pencil had the initials H.M. written at the end. She'd never quite seen anything like this. 

"Hey Nic check this out." said Marianne and gave her the pencil. 

"Check what?"

"The pencil"

Nicole studied it carefully. She then proceeded to doodle on her notebook. Nicole was really good at it. She headed the art team in their school.

"What do you think?" asked Marianne.

"It must be expensive. I have never seen anything as smooth as this before. It's so soft. Look at the gradient when you smudge it." she said and ran her fingers over the doodle.

Marianne swiped her finger on the place where she had pointed at. Nicole was right. 

"Damn." Marianne muttered under her breath.

"Yeah damn. She told you to keep it, didn't she?"

"No. She told me to return it tomorrow."

"Only when you insisted." she said with a raised eyebrow. 

"Who is she? I don't think I've ever seen her around here before." said Marianne deviating from the topic.

"The new girl. She joined today." Nicole answered.

"Did she introduce herself to the class?"

"Yes."

"When?"

"Just a few seconds before you came in."

"Where is she from where?"

"French Riviera."

"Eh? What is she doing in Paris?!"

"How in the world would I know," said Nicole half-confused and half-surprised herself. "If you want to know then go ask her."

"What's her name?" Marianne continued.

"Héloïse I think. I'm not sure." Nicole said with uncertainty.

"Héloïse" Marianne whispered to herself.


	3. Rude Awakening

Right after Physics was Computer Science which happened to be in the same room. It was the first lecture for this subject for this year. Marianne and Nicole occupied one of the seats in the middle row before the students came in.

Marianne wanted to pay attention in this class. She really liked this subject since it mostly consisted of logical reasoning and learning the machine language. In short, it meant Marianne didn't have to cram much and instead just understand how the process flowed.

The students started pouring just before the class was about to start. Marianne checked her watch. 11:29. The professor came in just as time turned 11:30 on her watch. Everyone had settled by then.

The professor began with the introductions."My name is Collete Marchand. You may call me Professor Marchand. I have been teaching this subject for 17 years. Now before I start with the subject I'd like it very much if you could introduce yourself one by one starting with your names and hobbies."

Since the class consisted of about 20 students, it took about ten minutes for all the introductions to get over. After it was done the professor started talking about the syllabus that would be covered for the year.

She had been speaking for about 30 seconds when a girl in a black hoodie, black jeans and white sneakers entered the lecture hall. It was the same blonde girl who had lent the pencil to Marianne. She didn't speak a word of apology to the professor lest even look at her. Marianne found this extremely rude. She squinted her eyes at the blonde.

She passed Marianne as she went to the back of the class, each step louder than the previous. Their eyes met briefly. The blue eyes were placid, almost with no emotions. Marianne's breath stopped. She resumed breathing soon but her heart had started to beat faster. She took a deep breath, scoffing in disbelief.

"How could someone be so cocky?" she thought to herself.

The professor looked a little shaken but she kept her cool. "Before I continue, I'd like to mention in case you are late for class, then please knock on the door and ask for permission before you enter," she said in a stern voice. Marianne nodded made a mental note of this.

The first half of the lecture was quite boring since they only studied theory through the PowerPoint presentation. But in the next half, they got to put the theory to use. The professor wrote a small code on her computer. She then proceeded to explain every line of code.

"And this will be the output." the professor said it like she had done it a thousand times before. It was chirpy and Marianne liked the way she said it. The screen only displayed _Hello World_ on a black screen*.* But Marianne was still fascinated by it.

"You will all get a chance to execute this in the practical lab which will start from next week. The details will be given to you in the next class" she declared. She went on to mention her office hours and asked students to meet her if they had any queries.

She then exited the room. Marianne checked her watch. 12:55. It was five minutes until the lunch break. No this was basically lunchbreak. She stretched her hands out, closed her eyes and threw her head back.

When she opened her eyes the first thing she saw was the blonde girl upside down. Her legs were atop the table, arms folded. She had completely slipped out of Marianne's mind. The blue eyes were staring at her intensely. Marianne almost fell back on her chair but was saved due to her quick reflexes. Adrenaline was pumping through her.

Marianne quickly turned to see blonde. She had stood up by now and was walking towards Marianne, her eyes still fixed and lips pursed. Marianne stopped blinking. Her eyes widened. Her cheek was burning. Her forehead was burning.

The blue-eyed girl looked away just before crossing her. Marianne turned around, her eyes following the blonde as she exited the room. Marianne was still staring at the door after she had disappeared. She was now standing up without realising that she had.

Suddenly a hand started waving in front of her which brought her back to her senses.

"Hellooo!! Are you even listening to me?" asked Nicole annoyedly.

"Sorry what did you say?"

"Shall we go eat? I'm hungry."

"Me too." Marianne said without much thought. She put her bags on her shoulders.

Nicole had started walking towards the door but Marianne stood where she was. She stopped when she realised there was no one behind her.

"Lady, move your feet." Nicole needled at her. But it fell on deaf ears. Marianne was staring at the floor and shaking her head.

"Oh god, this is not good." Nicole murmured and rolled her eyes. She grabbed Marianne by her wrists and dragged her to the cafeteria.

\---

Marianne was hogging the food in front of her. She hadn't realised how hungry she was till she put food in her mouth. She had eaten two slices of toasted bread, two eggs, a glass of milk, and a banana for breakfast. But it had all been burnt during the practice session.

"Do you have to stuff your face with food?" Nicole asked a little disgusted. She was strict about eating etiquettes.

"I'm famished," Marianne answered with her mouth half full and her hands in the air emphasizing how hungry she was.

"Don't speak while eating."

Marianne swallowed the food in her mouth. She turned to Nicole who was sitting beside her. "You'd probably eat the same way if you played all morning and didn't eat anything for 6 hours straight."

Nicole shrugged. Marianne couldn't help but chuckle. She knew Nicole would never deviate from following eating manners no matter how hungry she was.

"Your phone is vibrating." Nicole said.

"God knows how I miss it every time but you don't."

"Then don't put it on vibrate." she suggested.

"You know how much ringtones frustrate me" said Marianne while pulling her phone out.

"The feeling is mutual." Nicole agreed.

Marianne checked the phone screen. It said Sophie. She picked up the call.

"Hey Soph what's up?"

"Are you free after school?"

"Yeah till 5 'o'clock. Why?"

"Coach Armand wants to meet me, you and Amelie for some reason."

"Okay. Is Amelie free?"

"Yeah."

"Where are we meeting?"

"In the playground."

"Okay. See you there."

"Yeah." said Sophie and cut the call.

\---

The next lecture was Maths which begun at 11:30. Marianne dragged Nicole to the lecture hall three minutes before the class was due to start. She wanted the front seat in any case.

"It's too early. Why am I even here with you?" Nicole complained as she watched Marianne throw her bags near one of the seats on the second row.

"Because you're my best friend and I want the front seat. You know how people fight for it."

"That's not the front seat. You're literally on the second one." she pricked at her.

"Well, the first seat is too close to the board. The words written on the board are too big for my eyes from there. And the third is too far back. This..." she said pointing to her seat"...is perfect. Plus I can doze off whenever I want to and hide behind the person in front of me." Marianne said trying to explain her reasoning.

"Okay. But I'm going to sit in the back."

"And leave me alone??"

"Once the class starts, I'll be the one left alone." said Nicole leaving no room for further persuation.

"I am not going to argue against that." Marianne said grinning at her.

Marianne knew what Nicole spoke was true. She got in her zone while solving problems. She hardly spoke to anyone. Marianne had been enthusiastic about Maths right from her childhood days.

"Well it's almost time for class." Nicole said chuckling "I'm going to take that seat before someone like me does." Marianne let out a small laugh.

She watched Nicole take the last seat near the window. One other person was sitting in one of the last seats. The person had a black hoodie on their head and was scribbling in a notebook. Marianne noticed the pencil that person was using was black. "Is it Heloise?" she questioned herself.

Marianne took a step towards the person to take a closer look. Suddenly the door swung open and a swarm of students entered the class. Marianne hurried to her seat just in case someone tried to steal it which resulted in her completely forgetting about the person in the black hoodie.

The professor had also entered with the students. She asked everyone to settle down quickly. She connected her computer to the projector which displayed today's topic. The professor also used the board to explain some examples. Once she was done she displayed some questions on the projector.

"When you are done with the questions please raise your hand to let me know. Do the same in case you have any doubts. Once all of you are ready, I'll move on to the next slide." the professor smilingly.

For Marianne solving the questions was like a race. She had to be first. She wasted no time in getting down to finding the answers. Her hand was one of the first ones to shoot up. The boy beside her had put it up before her. Marianne was dejected but she consoled herself that this wasn't life or death. It was okay to be second in this.

The rest of the class went by in the same fashion with the topic explained and then solving questions to grasp it better.

"So there's still 15 minutes remaining before this lecture ends. I'd like to discuss an important question that will surely come for your exam. But before I do, I want you all to give it a try. You have five minutes." the professor said.

She then displayed the question on the screen. "Five minutes is a long time," Marianne thought. Marianne shot at solving the problem anyway. As she started solving it she understood why so much time was given. Marianne was racking her brain. She couldn't solve it. It was too tough. She put her hand on her head, troubled at not being able to find a solution.

"Time's up" the professor said. "Is there anyone who solved this problem?"

Marianne looked around the class to see if anyone did. Not one hand went up.

The professor turned to the board to discuss it.

"28" came a bold voice from behind Marianne.

The professor turned around to face the class. "That's correct. Who was that?"

Marianne too turned around to see who it was. The person in the black hoodie was holding a pencil up. She pulled down the hoodie revealing her blonde hair, now looking directly at Marianne. Marianne's hazel eyes met the pair of flaming blue ones. Her full lips slowly turned into a curve relishing the triumph as much as possible. Her whole face radiated arrogance.

Marianne felt the blood boil inside her. Her whole body was shaking and her skin was on fire. She didn't know if it was the anger at being defeated or a mark of admiration. Maybe it was both. She bit her lower lip, unsure of what she was feeling. She broke off the eye contact and turned towards the board. She just wanted this lecture to end now.

The next thing she heard was the final school bell indicating the day was over. She rushed out of the classroom as soon as the professor had exited. She heard Nicole yelling at her asking her to wait. Marianne waved back at her which meant she had to leave. She had to meet Coach Armand anyway.


	4. Battle 2.0

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finished writing this chapter sooner than I thought I would.  
> Also thanks for the nice comments. I really appreciate them :))

Marianne made her way towards the playground. She was furiously sipping the water from her bottle. She didn't like feeling like this. Out of control, angry, confused and unable to comprehend her feelings.

She picked up her pace hoping it would blow the steam off. But it also made her hair bounce up and down which annoyed her greatly. "Stupid hair." she muttered as she pushed her jet black hair behind her head.

"She's so haughty." continued her thought process. She shook her head in dubiety."Maybe she's not. I'm responding too emotionally. Get yourself together Marianne." she scolded herself.

She was now almost near the playground. She saw two girls standing near one of the goalposts. The taller one waved at her. She was as tall as Marianne. Sophie was smiling as she approached.

"Hey." said Marianne.

"Hey. How was your day?" asked Sophie cheerfully.

"Good. What about you?" Marianne said without any emotion.

"It was okay. I feel so tired. I want to go home and sleep." said Sophie.

Marianne wanted to do the same. Crash into the bed and bury her face in the pillow and forget that today ever happened.

"Well there's Coach" said Amelie.

They all watched him up as he came towards them.

"Good Evening Sir." they all said together.

"Good Evening," he said back."The reason I called you was to let you know that a new girl will be joining us for practice tomorrow. She's your age and might be in one of your classes."

"What position does she play in?" Marianne interjected.

"She's a smasher. That's why I wanted to talk to you." he said looking at Marianne."I want you to practice with her" his index finger now pointing at her.

"But then who do I play with?" Sophie asked worriedly.

"Practice with the juniors. Help them with the underarm pass."

Sophie nodded acknowledging the coach's suggestion.

"Anyway" he continued "the main reason I asked you to meet me was to tell you that someone new will be joining tomorrow and you won't be surprised when she does join."

"Okay thanks for informing us." Marianne responded.

"I think that's it. You can leave now. See you at practice tomorrow." he concluded with a smile. "Please be on time."

"Yes sir" they all said together and left the playground.

\---

Sophie and Amelie were walking back to their homes together. They usually did. Marianne's house was a five-minute walk from the school. Sophie lived another five minutes away.

"Any new students in your class?" Marianne enquired.

"Yeah there are a couple in my class." Sophie replied.

"Do you think it's one of them?"

"Honestly I have no idea. Is there anyone in yours?"

"Yes. Two boys and one girl." Marianne answered.

"You think it might be her?" Sophie interrogated with interest.

"No." Marianne huffed.

"There's no way it could be her." she convinced herself.

"We'll know tomorrow" said Sophie cheerfully. She continued with saying how excited she was to see who it was. She hoped it was someone from her class.

Marianne chose to stay mum till they parted their ways.

\---

"Mom I'm leaving! I'm really late!" Marianne shouted as she went out the door.

"At least have a glass of milk before you go." her mother shouted from inside the house.

"I put an apple and a banana in my bag." she reassured her mother.

Marianne didn't wait to hear what her mother said next. She was now running on the road. She checked her watch. 7:28.

"It takes me 2 minutes 42 seconds to run" she thought. "I can make it".

She ran as fast as the legs could carry her. Halfway to the school, she spotted a short brunette girl. She was walking as fast as she could. Marianne didn't take a second to recognise her.

"WE ARE LATE SOPHIE RUNNNNN" Marianne yelled at her. She now crossed Sophie who had started running too.

They both pushed the door together to enter the court, completely out of breath. They flung their bags to the side and made their way towards the net. All her teammates were standing making a circle.

Everyone was now looking at them. A few of the girls made some space and Marianne and Sophie adjusted themselves. The Coach was standing opposite to the late girls, his arms folded. He didn't look too happy.

"Since everyone is here." he declared." I'd like you all to meet someone." he said his arm pointing to a tall girl with blonde hair standing beside him.

Marianne's eyes widened in shock. It was the same girl from yesterday's class. The one who reeked of arrogance. The one who was impertinent. She raised her eyebrows questioning herself now if she was dreaming "It couldn't possibly be her." Marianne's mouth opened slightly. Her breaths were now a little deeper and quicker.

"Would you like to introduce yourself?" the coach asked the new girl.

The girl took a step forward, hands behind her back. She took a look at everyone and smiled."My name is Heloise and I'm 16 years old." she said charmingly.

"And I like Math," she said now looking at Marianne, with a smirk on her face. She was really rubbing yesterday's battle outcome on Marianne.

Marianne glared at her. She couldn't believe the audacity of this girl. Her nostrils flared in annoyance, eyebrows now furrowed. She could feel the blood rush to her cheeks.

"Okay let's get started." the coach announced."Marianne will lead today."

Marianne took one last look at Heloise before passing her. She was sure she would have shoved Heloise with her shoulder if no one was around. She started running as fast as she could with Sophie right on her tail. The blood rushing through her veins was supplementing her with extra oxygen. She felt as if she was flying.

Before Marianne knew they all had run 8 rounds. It was almost over. She wanted to finish strong. Her legs were burning and her head was light. But she kept going. She suddenly felt a figure by her side. She turned her face a little to see who it was. It was Heloise.

Marianne picked up her pace and lengthened her strides. She was not going to be beaten this time. She knew Heloise was right behind her. She wanted to look back. But an important rule of winning is to not look back. So she concentrated the urge into pumping her leg muscles.

She was now almost there. She just had to dash the length of the court. Marianne was swinging her hands as much as she could to facilitate the sprint. Suddenly through the corner of her eye, she saw the blonde go slightly ahead. They both crossed the service line.

They both slowed down and came to a stop. Marianne put her arms on her hips trying to get as much air as possible. Heloise bent down to put her hands on her knees. She was looking at Marianne with a smile on her face. Her eyes were gleaming.

"You're fast" Marianne complimented her, surprised she actually said that. But she knew it was true and she didn't mind saying it out loud.

"I can go slower next time." she said with a glint in her eyes.

Marianne looked at her confused. "Why would she go slow? What is she playing at?" she wondered. It definitely didn't make sense to her.

"Are you mocking me?" Marianne challenged.

"No. If you think I'm fast then by your standards you are too." Heloise said sincerely."And I do think you are fast."

"Guys we need to stretch." said Sophie panting, cutting their moment short.

Marianne hadn't noticed the girls form a circle around them in the meantime. Heloise stepped back to take a position with her teammates. Marianne was now in the centre. All eyes were on her. But none of them bothered her except Heloise's blue smizing ones.


	5. Smash Away

Marianne's face was burning. Heloise's last comment irked her a little. She decided to ignore it for now and think about it later. She started with the warm-up rotations. 

The first was neck rotation. Marianne closed her eyes and turned her neck clockwise. She stopped after three counts to see if everyone was following her. The first person she saw was Heloise who was right in front of her. Heloise was rotating her head really slowly and in the process stretching out all her neck muscles. Marianne could make out an unmistakable vein popping on her neck each time she stretched it further.

Heloise suddenly stopped what she was doing, opened her eyes and noticed what Marianne was staring at. Marianne's face flushed as she caught Heloise's gaze. She quickly looked away, embarrassed. She turned to a junior and advised her on how to do the exercise properly in the hope her gaze would be disguised.

For the rest of the exercises, Marianne kept her back to Heloise. They moved on to arm, wrist, hip and leg rotations. Each rotation was done eight times before changing the direction. From time to time Marianne stopped to see if the juniors were following her properly making sure to stay away from Heloise's sight.

After rotations came the stretches. They did the normal leg stretches which included lunges and squats. She then stretched her legs as far away as possible from each other and bent down to touch the ground. From between her legs, she saw Heloise directly looking at her. A spark went up to her spine. Her legs were quivering. She felt a little faint. She came back up again. 

"I must be really dehydrated," she thought."I should have eaten breakfast today."she scolded herself.

Marianne felt nauseous. She asked Sophie to take her place and lead the stretches while she went to get water. But she made sure she asked Coach Armand this time. He let her when she told him she hadn't eaten anything since the previous night.

She ran to her bag, took out her bottle and chugged it as fast as she could. Water was dripping from her the sides of her mouth but she couldn't care less. She then took out a banana and put it whole in her mouth. Out of nowhere, she felt someone beside her. With the banana still poking out a little from a mouth, she turned her face to see who it was. She almost choked when she realised it was Heloise who was now laughing. 

"What?" Marianne shot at her, mouth still full.

"Nothing" she replied nonchalantly. 

Marianne was aware that the blonde eyes were on her. She felt her insides turn. But she continued to chew while Heloise drank water. For some reason, Marianne was not able to swallow food which she found absurd considering she was quite hungry. With great difficulty, she gulped her food.

"I hope you asked coach if you could drink water." said Marianne.

"I did."

A few seconds passed between them. Marianne filled her bottle from the water cooler.

"I heard that you're a smasher." Marianne said.

"I play all positions. But yes I mostly smash." Heloise confirmed."What about you?"

"You'll find out soon enough. We'll be practising together today anyway." Marianne said trying not to divulge too much information at once. "Let me know when you are ready to go." 

"I'm ready. Are you?" Heloise jested.

Marianne gave her half a smile and ran towards the court. Heloise followed right behind her.

\---

Marianne picked up one of the balls and tested it for air. She wanted to choose the best one. After going through a couple of them she decided on two of them. She already knew which one she wanted. She passed both of them to Heloise. She wanted to see which one the blonde would pick.

"Which one?" Marianne enquired.

Heloise pressed both the balls in both her palms one by one. "This" she said confidently choosing the one that was opposite of Marianne's choice.

Marianne stepped close to Heloise. She gave the blonde a curved smile that went up to the right side of her face. She then picked up her choice and walked away to take her position opposite from Heloise. She turned to face Heloise who had a conceited smirk on her face.

They started out by practising the forearm drills first. Marianne noticed Heloise had an impeccable technique. It already gave away that she had been playing this game for many years. 

They soon shifted to overhead drills. Heloise bent her hands inwards instead of outwards, which gave less room for slipping off the ball. Marianne knew how difficult it was to be good at this. You had to be precise about the position you had to place your hands in. Too close and the ball will hit your wrists. Too far and you won't be able to push the ball. Marianne was slightly impressed.

Marianne was now really curious to see how she smashed the ball. But she prolonged to see when Heloise would ask. It didn't take long.

"Can I start smashing?" Heloise asked impatiently. 

"Sure." she replied chuckling to herself.

Heloise smashed the ball softly at first, only using her wrists. Marianne was easily returning all of them. "She has good wrist movement" Marianne made a mental note. 

"I'm going to start hitting a little harder" Heloise warned her after a couple of hits.

"I thought that was your hardest" Marianne gibed. 

Heloise snickered at her. She felt insulted. Her blue eyes were flaming.

Heloise took a step back and took her position. Marianne supplied the ball. Heloise passed it back. Marianne made an overhead pass lifting the ball. Heloise used her arm and wrist to hit the ball, bending her body forwards to give it momentum.

It wasn't too hard. Marianne picked it up. Heloise hit it again. Marianne returned. This one went a little higher. Heloise positioned herself under the ball and hit it as hard as she could. It shot straight at Marianne's forearm, leaving a stinging sensation as it bounced off her arm. But she couldn't control it and it went flying away. 

Heloise had a smug look on her face. Marianne was fuming. Heloise turned and ran to fetch the ball. She came back with the ball shuffling between both her hands. Heloise raised her eyebrows in challenge.

Marianne felt provoked. Not one other ball was going to go unreturned. She was in her zone now. There was no room for error. 

Heloise threw the ball and she supplied it. Heloise fired back to back smashes at her and she returned all of them. They didn't all go straight to Heloise but she moved around to make sure that she was smashing as many of them as possible. And when she couldn't, she passed the ball back to Marianne so that she could lift it. 

Marianne and Heloise were both sweating profusely. Marianne wiped the sweat off from her forehead using her sleeve. Heloise mirrored her movement. 

One of the balls went really high up in the air. Marianne had done it deliberately to see what would be the blondes next move. She bent down to her knees, ready for the next smash. Heloise took a step back and waited till the ball was at the perfect height. Then she jumped as high as she could, shifting her weight forward and smashed the ball. The ball hit Marianne's forearm but it went flying way over Heloise's head.

Marianne's forearm was burning. She whimpered on the inside but on the outside she showed no signs of pain. She fluttered her arms to shake away it away. By the time Heloise had returned with the ball.

"I hope it wasn't too hard" came a jab from the blonde. Marianne flared her nostrils and stopped shaking her arms. She motioned with her hands to throw the ball. Heloise complied.

Marianne passed it a little low this time. Heloise returned it back but with a bit of height. Marianne got the intense urge to smash the ball. And she acted on it. Using her arm and wrist she hit the ball making sure it wasn't too hard. Heloise wasn't ready for it which caused her arms to bend awkwardly.

"I'm sorry I couldn't resist" Marianne said unapologetically. She then smiled at her in a goading manner.

Heloise's eyes widened in surprise. It took a moment for her to process what had happened. And when she did she gave Marianne a sly half-grin. Her blue eyes had a twinkle in them. 

"Let's have some more." Heloise spurred her.

Marianne felt a fire ignite inside her. She picked up the ball and supplied it. Heloise gave it a bit of height and bent down on her knees, waiting for Marianne's next move. The black-haired girl accepted the dare and smashed the ball. Heloise returned it. Marianne lifted the ball and got into position. Heloise graced it with a smash. Marianne had to dive to return it.

This went back and forth, each giving a turn to the other for smashing. They both now had a zone of their own. As time went by, the smashes grew stronger and louder which caused them to grab the attention of their teammates. They all stopped their practice and watched them go against each other. The Coach had joined them too.

Marianne and Heloise were quite aware of the people around them. But it didn't matter. Both of them were exhausted. But neither of them stopped to catch their breath. They were engaged in a duel that neither of them was ready to back down from.

Heloise passed a ball as high in the air as she could. Marianne was ready. She jumped high with agility and spiked the ball. The ball hit the ground and then hit Heloise's chin causing her to fall on her back. 

Marianne ran towards the fallen blonde and put her knees on the floor. Heloise was rubbing her chin with her palm. 

"Are you okay?"Marianne asked anxiously.

Heloise's blue-eyes looked at the green-ones right above her. They were full of worry. The black haired-girl was breathing through her mouth. 

Heloise stared straight into Marianne's eyes. The blue ones were pure and innocent. She started laughing heartily. Her eyelids had turned upwards and her eyes were jumping in joy. And then they went dark.

Marianne felt the everything round her get darker. Everyone was now hovering over them. 

"Guys give space for her to breathe"Marianne mentioned her hands motioning them to move away. They all took a step back except the Coach.

"Are you alright?" he asked Heloise. She nodded her head. 

Marianne put her hand forward to help her. Heloise took it. Marianne felt warmth in her palms. She could feel her veins pumping blood in her wrists. She figured it must be from the impact of the ball from the past twenty-minutes. 

She stood up, pulling Heloise up with her. They were both standing really close. She could feel Heloise's heavy breath on her face. 

"Good smash." Heloise complimented and nudged her shoulder.

"Thanks" said a bubbling Marianne. She knew Heloise meant it. 

"Let's take a break." the coach told everyone."Be back on the court in five minutes."


	6. Celebrity

"That was awesome!" Sophie burst."I was holding my breath for both of you."

"Do you know how crazy it was!!" said Sylvie.

"How do you even pick up the ball?" Therese said in awe.

Annette and Amelie too joined in the chorusing. Marianne couldn't half understand what they were saying but she was smiling anyway. She looked at Heloise who now had a wide grin on her face. Her blue eyes had a child-like shine to them. Marianne's heart skipped a beat. 

"You must be thirsty" said Sophie wrapping her hand wrapping around Marianne's wrist ."Let's go." She also grabbed Heloises arm and pulled them with her.

Marianne could hear the chatter around her on the way to their bags. Some people were patting her back. Marianne felt a little overwhelmed.

Sophie put a bottle in her hands. "Drink" she said. Marianne chugged as much as she could in one breath. She then sat down on one of the benches. Heloise came and sat beside her. 

"Show me your arm" the blonde said.

Marianne put out her arm. Heloise put her hand on her forearm and pulled it towards her to take a better look. Marianne could feel her body jerk from the inside as well as outside. Heloise put out her own arm.

"Look how red they are!"

"Yours are redder" said Marianne smugly. 

"No they aren't!"

"You have to let me join the both of you after the break."Sophie said breaking the banter between them. Marianne felt the warmth leave her hand as Heloise let go of her grip.

"That's a great idea." said Marianne turning to Sophie "You should ask Sir."

Sophie rushed off to ask for permission. Marianne pulled out the apple from her bag. 

"I'm going to wash my apple. Do you want to come?" she asked Heloise.

"Is the water cold?".

"Yes it's pretty cold. Why do you ask?"

"I thought I could let it run on my arms. They are burning." Heloise confessed.

Marianne was surprised that she said it out loud. "So are mine" Marianne said with a smile."Follow me" she said showing her the way to the locker room.

\---

Marianne was crunching on her washed apple as she ran her hands through water. Heloise was doing the same too.

"How long have you been playing?" questioned Marianne.

"Six years" answered Heloise."What about you?"

"A little more than three years"

"Three?!" Heloise asked astonished.

"Yeah. Why do you sound so surprised?"

"It's just that you play really well for someone who's only been playing three years." Heloise said.

"I like playing."

"Me too."

"That was one of the best rallies I've ever had" said Marianne."I enjoyed it a lot."

"So knocking me down must have been really fun for you." Heloise joked.

"No! I was worried that you were hurt." Marianne said seriously. 

"I found it really funny. But it hurt like hell." 

"Can I take a look?" asked Marianne. She was worried again.

"And what do you expect to see? A dent?" Heloise clowned."But sure you may."she added a little shyly.

Marianne took the last bite off her apple and threw it in the trash can near her. She then washed the juice off her hands making sure they were clean. 

Marianne then took a step closer to Heloise. She realised they were almost the same height. She put the tip of her index-finger on Heloise's chin and tipped it upwards. The green-eyed girl inspected it closely until she was satisfied she couldn't spot any damage. She slowly let go of her finger from Heloise's chin. 

Heloise made eye contact with Marianne as she brought her face back into position. Marianne's felt a shiver down her spine as she the electrifying blue eyes met hers. Her entire body went numb. Heloise's gaze was searing her. She couldn't look any longer. She turned away, opened the tap and splashed water on her face.

"We should go. Otherwise, we might have to duck walk the entire length of the court" said Marianne, water still dripping from her face."Twice" now holding up two of her fingers.

"Are you serious?"

"Coach sometimes makes us do it if we dilly-dally" said Marianne.

"That's brutal." said Helosie shrugging.

"I'll race you. The last one to the court doesn't smash until the other hits 50 smashes" said Marianne setting the rules.

"Done. Who's going to call?"

"You do it" 

"Okay on my go."

"Alright"

Marianne put her right foot back and left hand up. Heloise did the exact opposite. 

"3...2...1..." Heloise held for a few seconds.

Marianne was getting impatient. "Are you going to say go after the practice ends?!" she snapped.

"GO" Heloise shouted and dashed to the court.

"Not fair" Marianne yelled running behind her.

\---

Coach Armand let Sophie join Marianne and Heloise in their practice. She was very enthusiastic about it and thoroughly enjoyed her practice session with them. It wasn't as intense as before but the atmosphere was merry.

After the practice, the girls headed to the locker room to change. Everyone was bombarding Heloise with all sorts of questions, especially Sylvie and Therese. Marianne, who was leaning on the wall, chose to observe from afar instead of joining the party. Heloise looked nervous and uncomfortable but she tried her best to respond to the queries.

Marianne felt a hand on her shoulder. It was Sophie. 

"Are you okay?" she asked."You're really quiet."

"I'm just really tired. I didn't eat any breakfast." Marianne said weakly.

Sophie quickly opened her bag and pulled out a box. Her mother had packed some sandwiches for after practice. 

"Thanks a lot Soph. But it's for you. I can't."

"I insist. I had a huge breakfast today."

"Are you sure?"

Sophie nodded, reassuring her that she wanted Marianne to have it. "Go on. Are you going to make ask you twice?" she said kindly putting the box in Marianne's hands.

Amelie came and stood next to them. "How do celebrities stay cool?" she asked.

"Enlighten me." said Marianne her mouth half-full and slurring the words.

"They have many fans." Amelie said pointing with her eyes to the crowd around Heloise. 

Sophie cackled at the reference. Marianne rolled her eyes. 

"So she's a celebrity now?" Marianne asked. 

"Are you jealous?" Amelie mocked.

"Me? Jealous? Hardly." Marianne brushed it away. 

"Relax. I'm pulling your leg" Amelie said giving her a playful punch on her stomach.

"Yeah yeah very funny".Marianne said. She checked her watch. 7:41. It was time for everyone to start leaving. 

"Who all are done changing?" she shouted. 

All hands went up except Heloise's. "All of you start moving now" she said sternly.

The whole room cleared out except for Sophie, Amelie and Heloise and herself. Sophie was waiting for Amelie to tie her shoelaces. Marianne flung her bags on her shoulder and walked out of the locker room. She heard footsteps behind her which soon caught up to her. It was the blonde girl.

"Which subject do you have?" she questioned Marianne.

"Chemistry."

"Oh me too. I guess we are in the same class then."

"Do you want to go together?" asked Marianne.

"Yes that'd be great" Heloise said delighted. Her eyes had a spark in them.

They both started walking towards their class. 

"Oh wait I almost forgot" said Marianne. She adjusted her bag to put in front of her chest. She opened the zip and shuffled through the things in her bag trying to find something.

"Aha!" she exulted when she found what she wanted. She pulled it out from the bag. It was the pencil that Heloise had lent her. "Thanks for letting me use it."

"Don't mention it. But I want you to keep it." Heloise requested."Please?" Heloise was looking at her with beady eyes.

"Thanks, Heloise." Marianne said giving her a soft smile. Heloise beamed in response. 

"Can I ask something?" said Marianne.

"Sure."

"Actually it's more of a guess. Is H.M. your initials?" Marianne questioned.

"Yes." Heloise said surprised. "How did you know?"

"It's on this pencil" Marianne said twisting the sleek black frame in her hands."What does M stand for?"

Heloise hesitated a little before answering "Marchand."

The surname struck an odd chord in Marianne.


	7. Ocean Eyes

Marianne and Heloise both entered the class together. Marianne spotted Nicole sitting on the top of the last table, looking out the window. She didn't notice the two of them come in.

Marianne walked up to her and shook her by the shoulders. Nicole got goosebumps on her hands on being caught unaware.

"Good morning, sunshine!" Marianne said cheerfully. 

"And now I'm fully awake thanks to you." Nicole snapped crossly .

"Didn't you go to the studio today?"

"I did. But I'm still sleepy." Nicole replied. 

Marianne heard bags drop in the seat in front of her. She turned her head to see who it was. It was Heloise.

"Heloise, I'd like you to meet someone," Marianne said putting her arm around the brunette's shoulders."This is Nicole." She then pointed her fingers to the blonde "And Nicole this is Heloise"

Nicole smiled at her pleasantly.

"Hey." said Heloise and held out her right arm for a handshake.

Marianne took Heloise's hands in hers before the brunette could. "Nicole doesn't shake hands." she said giving a cheeky smile to the black-eyed girl.

"That's not true. Don't be silly" Nicole protested but she didn't hold out her hand either. 

"That's a pretty good handshake" said Heloise.

"Likewise" said Marianne. "How hard can you squeeze it?" she challenged. 

"It'd really hurt" she warned

"Go for it" 

Heloise squeezed it as hard as she could. Marianne countered it by pressing it with the same strength. They were both were looking at each other in the eye, not willing to give up. Marianne felt her arm heating up, sending tingling sensations throughout. 

"The Professor is here" said Nicole which caused them to break away. 

"Who taught you that?" asked Heloise. 

"My dad."

"So did mine" Heloise said with a smile. 

Marianne sat in the seat next to Nicole while the blonde-haired girl took hers. Nicole threw a pen in the black-haired girls lap. 

"What's this for?" a surprised Marianne asked.

"I know you didn't get one."

"I actually did." Marianne smiled cheekily pulling out Heloise's pencil from her bag.

Nicole recognised it immediately. "But..."she started.

"But I'm going to use this since you worked so hard to get it for me." Marianne stated twisting the pen in her hands. Nicole rolled her eyes and turned her attention to the board. Marianne followed the suit with a smile on her face.

Halfway through the lecture, Marianne couldn't concentrate anymore and diverted her attention to see what everyone in the class was doing. Most of them were taking notes. Nicole was still engrossed in the lecture. Heloise was bent over her notebook. Marianne adjusted herself to see what she was doing. She could make out that she was drawing something with a pencil. She watched her for some time before she decided to again get back to studying and take notes.

Suddenly Marianne felt a pair of eyes on her. From the corner of her eyes, she saw that Heloise had now leaned her back against the wall, legs crossed. Her blue eyes were on her. Marianne could feel her heartbeat increase rapidly. She tried to reposition her body but it was not responding to her. She tried to move her legs but it just limped awkwardly on the floor beneath her. 

Heloise was glancing from time to time and then scribbling something in her notebook. Marianne felt a burning sensation all over her skin each time Heloise's gaze was on her. She figured it must be from the sun rays coming from the window even though she was nowhere close to it. 

Marianne ran her hand through her silky black hair and ruffled it hoping that it would ease the tension. She then turned to face at Heloise. The blue-grey eyes were staring intensely at her. She had an intimidating scowl on her face. Marianne held her breath. Her body was solid as a rock. Even her eyes stopped blinking.

Heloise's facial features slowly softened. The small curved smile appeared on her face. Marianne watched the blonde look down into her notebook again and move a green coloured pencil delicately on it. The dazzling blue-eyes then looked up to catch a quick look at the green-eyed girl. She then turned her body to face the board. Marianne let out a deep breath. She felt she was breathing again after a hundred years. 

\---

"I'll see you later in Computers. I have some work to do" said Nicole. 

"Okay I'll save you a seat." Marianne offered.

"Thanks babe." Nicole said with a smile and disappeared within seconds.

Marianne got up from her seat and stood behind Heloise. The blonde was unaware of her presence.

"Can I see what you drew?" Marianne asked. Heloise jumped. She turned back to look at the black-haired girl.

"Can I refuse?" Heloise asked back hesitantly.

"I would like to see it." Marianne pressured holding out her hand.

Heloise took her notebook and flipped a few pages. She handed it over to Marianne, apprehensively. It was a rough sketch of a landscape. Marianne flipped a page. 

"Nooo," Heloise screamed and jumped from her seat. But it was too late.

A gasp escaped Marianne's mouth. It was a sketch of her face with only her eyes coloured.

"When someone shows you a page you stay on that page. Not go left and right!" Heloise argued.

Marianne gave her a debatable look. She waited for Heloise to continue while in the meantime she examined the sketch. 

Heloise took a deep breath."The lighting was perfect. It just had to." she started explaining. "I should have asked for permission," she said ashamedly. 

"You should have." Marianne sighed. "But I'll let it slide this time because I think it's good" she commended her lips curving into a smile. Heloise beamed at her comment.

"You can try out for the art team in our school. Nicole heads it. If you are interested then you can talk to her about it." Marianne mentioned.

"I'll give it a thought." 

"You should." Marianne ushered her gently. "Also I'd like to say that my eyes aren't that big or that strikingly green either," she said with a laugh.

"You have the most mesmerizing eyes that I have ever seen" said Heloise looking intently at her. Marianne noticed a slight blush appear on Heloise's face. At the same time, she felt hot flashes on her cheeks.

Marianne almost blurted out that she felt the same way about Heloise's but she restrained herself. She instead settled with."Thank you. It's my mother's". 

"People say I have my mother's eyes too".

Marianne looked into the blondes girls eyes. This time she saw an ocean in the grey eyes. An ocean of sorrow and pain. And suddenly the grey were enveloped in blue flames. The ocean of sorrow and pain was set on fire of rage. 

\---

Heloise left abruptly saying that she had to meet a faculty. She didn't even take the book from Marianne. The black-haired girl put the notebook in her bag and headed over to the cafeteria to buy some food. Her stomach was rumbling. The counter had a long line and it took some time before her turn came. 

Marianne ate her food quickly and ran to the class as fast as she could since she also had to save her friend a seat. But she soon realised she didn't have to. Nicole had already reached before her and saved one for her too.

"How do you always reach before me?" asked Marianne as she put her bags on her seat.

"The same reason why you always come after me." replied Nicole. Marianne laughed at the absurdity of the answer.

The professor entered the class and everyone settled down. She had barely started when a loud rap on the door startled everyone. Heloise walked in with hands in her gree jacket. She passed the professors table and was heading towards the seats. 

"Excuse me, young lady. I didn't hear you ask for permission" said the professor.

Marianne saw a cold look in Heloise's eyes before she turned and asked "May I take my seat?". Her voice was clearly gritting through her teeth.

"Yes you may." said the professor.

Heloise flung her head and walked to the back of the classroom. She made a screeching sound with her chair before sitting down. 

Marianne couldn't believe what happened in front of her. She had seen no one behave with a professor like that before. There was a look of self-righteousness on Heloise's face. Marianne felt an innate sense of anger seeing her priggishness.

Marianne felt a palm on her hand. "Relax." Nicole said. She shifted her eyes to Nicole who was in front of her. Marianne hadn't realised she was glaring at Heloise. She eased her muscles a bit but she could still feel the steam escaping her head.

The professor continued"Before I start I like to tell you that I have sorted you into two batches for the practical labs as you can see on the screen. If anyone would like to swap their places with a student in the next batch then you may do so. I'll give you a minute to go through the list."

Marianne examined the list and noticed that she and Nicole were in separate batches. 

"We are in different batches." Marianne whispered to Nicole.

"I know. You raise your hand up"

"Why does is it always have to be me?" Marianne asked annoyedly.

"How does it even matter? It's not like it bothers you."

Marianne gave her a sharp look before nodding her head.

"Anyone in batch 1 who wants to swap seats may raise your hand up." said the professor. Marianne immediately put her hand up. She looked around the class to see that only one other person had put up their hand.

"Now anyone in batch 2 who wants to swap seats may raise your hand up." 

Two students raised their hands. 

"How convenient." the professor said with a smile. "Come down to my table and give me your names."

Marianne stepped out of her seat and approached the table. The first pair of students gave their names and went back to their seats. 

The black-haired girl took a step closer. "You must be Marianne if I'm correct," said the professor now looking in her hazel eyes. 

Marianne stopped dead right where she was. Heloise's blue-grey eyes were staring at her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know there's a little role reversal. I thought it'd be fun to play with this angle. Please don't hate me. Marianne from POALOF will always be my favourite painter :'))


	8. To see or not to see

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. Hope you all like it too.
> 
> Also thanks for the nice comments. I really appreciate them :))

Marianne felt a shiver go down her spine.

"Yes" Marianne stammered. 

The professor gave her a smile and then asked the name of the boy next to her. She then swapped their names on the list. Marianne was still staring at her.

"You can go back to your seat" the professor told her. 

Marianne nodded her head and started walking towards her seat. She was beyond baffled. "I'm losing my mind" she thought."It must just be a coincidence. Millions of people have the same eyes." But she knew she was lying to herself. No one had eyes like Heloise's. At least none with the scorching fire in them.

She took her seat and grabbed a quick look at Heloise who was now looking at the screen. She had an oddly satisfied look on her face. It confused and infuriated Marianne at the same time.

"Before I start with the lecture I'd like you to take one last look on the screen and let me know if you want to make any changes."

Marianne examined the list again. When she reached the last name on the list she blinked rapidly in disbelief. Heloise was in her batch. Marianne cursed herself silently for not going through the list thoroughly beforehand. The last thing she wanted was to be in the same lab as the blonde. She didn't even want to be on the same team as her. But then Heloise was the one on her team, not the other way round. Marianne fisted her hands in anger.

The rest of the lecture was spent in Marianne trying really hard to not incinerate the blonde with her mind. She tried to focus on the lecture instead. It was quite a long one for her. 

Marianne sighed heavily when the bell rang for the lunch break. She was exhausted. 

Suddenly she felt a tap on her shoulder. Marianne turned around to see who it was. It was the blonde.

"Do you want to have lunch together?" she asked.

Marianne thought she misheard her for a second. Marianne could have sworn she felt a sweat break out on her forehead. She looked at Nicole and sent a signal through her eyes to save her. Nicole didn't receive the signal.

Marianne now wished she never ate food in her life. "Sure. You can join me and Nicole." she said half-heartedly.

\---

Nicole was sitting beside Marianne and Heloise was sitting on the opposite side. There was an eerie silence between them which was being filled by the chatter from the students in their surroudings.

"So Marianne told me you head the art team." said Heloise.

Marianne wanted to kick herself in the shin for giving out that information. 

"I do. Do you paint?" asked Nicole.

"Yes a little I guess" said Heloise. 

Marianne would have genuinely praised Heloise's work but she wanted to keep Nicole away from the blonde as much as possible.

"I figured. You have an excellent pencil." Nicole said."Marianne showed it to me yesterday. Which brand is it?"

Marianne couldn't believe Nicole was instigating the conversation. She was passing death stares to Nicole at this point.

"It doesn't have a brand. My father made them for me." said Heloise

"How did he do that?"

"Well, he runs a company that manufactures art supplies. So he made these specially for me. Kind of limited edition, you know" she said with a smile.

Marianne would have done anything to wipe the stupid smile off her face.

"Anyway I have to leave now" Helosie said."Thanks for letting me have lunch with you."

"See you later" said Nicole. Marianne just nodded her head. They both watched her leave the cafeteria.

Marianne was angrily chomping her food and Nicole was taking the last sip of her juice. Nicole wiped her mouth with a napkin while Marianne drank some water from her cup.

"So what was that stare contest about?" asked Nicole.

Marianne choked on the water in her mouth and coughed uncontrollably. Nicole thumped her on the back while she recovered. "Stare contest?" Marianne asked startled.

"Well, Heloise was staring at you the whole time in Chemistry..." The colour in Marianne's cheeks changed very quickly out of embarrassment.

"...and you were glaring at her in Computers." and they grew even redder in indignation.

"Well you saw how she behaved with Professor Marchand" Marianne pointed.

"I did. I think she's quite arrogant."

"I don't like her. She thinks too highly of herself." said Marianne

"So are you going to stay away from her?"

"I can't. There's a problem." said Marianne."She's in the team."

"What!" Nicole shrieked.

"Yeah she joined this morning. She's really good." confessed Marianne.

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Well I'm telling you now!" said a pissed off Marianne.

"What are you going to do?" Nicole asked concerned.

"I don't know. I'll deal with it" she said sighing.

\---

The next lecture was French and Marianne paid attention to what the professor was discussing. He had taken the story of Orpheus and Eurydice to be one of the literary pieces to study this year. The discussion was about Orpheus who enticed Eurydice by playing the lyre melodiously. The first thought that passed into her head was how she felt when Heloise drew her. The pencil was Heloise's lyre and she played it for her. Marianne felt warm inside. She looked back to see Heloise. The blue-eyes were looking softly at her. Marianne melted when she saw it. And then Heloise's lips turned into a cheeky curve. The one thing she detested the most. She turned around and swatted her former thought away in disgust. 

\---

Marianne was the happiest when the last bell rang. It meant the weekend was here. The first thing she did when reached home was slump into her bed. She then put both hands on her head. She was trying to connect the pieces from the Computer class.

"Heloise Marchand" she whispered."Collette Marchand...same blue eyes...both have the same surname...but the surname is too common...it might just be a coincidence" she convinced herself." plus the professor is much shorter than me. Heloise is almost my height...it could very well just be a coincidence". But it was still pricking her somewhere in the back of her mind.

She drowned her face into the pillow. The events of the past two days that she had spent with Heloise came rushing in her mind like an overflowing dam. She spent the next two days analysing and making up her mind for what to do the next week.

At the end of two days, there were two things she was sure about. One was she didn't like Heloise and the second was she wanted to be as far away from her as possible.

\---

The practice session was over and Marianne was taking a shower. She was the last one remaining to take a bath. As she showered, she thought about how she had successfully evaded Heloise for most the week. Marianne had practised with her on the court for a couple of times, made small conversations and let her join for lunch with Nicole which had been quite uncomfortable but manageable. 

"Everyone start moving to your classes" she heard Sophie yell."The time is 9:42". She then heard the door close.

Marianne switched off her shower head and dried herself quickly. She then put on her panties and bra. She then opened her door, drying her hair with a towel. Heloise was standing right in front of her. 

"Why are you avoiding me?" she confronted the black-haired girl.

Marianne ignored the question and put on her shirt.

"Is it because I drew you without your permission?" Heloise questioned her.

"No" said Marianne placidly. 

"Then?"

"Don't take this the wrong way. But I think you're arrogant." Marianne said without mincing her words.

"What made you think that?!" she asked astounded.

"The way you behave towards Professor Marchand"

Heloise was stunned. She glared at Marianne not knowing what to say. Marianne had never seen so much rage before in her eyes. She felt she was going to evaporate into thin air. 

"Really is that how you see me?" Heloise asked with anger and hurt in her voice.

"It's not only me." Marianne justified herself. She didn't realise how harsh she sounded.

"So you formed your basis on what others think?" said an enraged Heloise.

"Who you are is described by the actions you take in fleeting moments," said Marianne icily.

"Not everything is fleeting. Some feelings are deep."Heloise hissed."And you don't know a thing about me". She stormed out the door ramming it shut behind her. 

\---

Marianne entered the class and took the first seat even though she hated it. She wanted to be as far away from Heloise as possible. "Damn Heloise and her complacency" she muttered to herself.

Marianne spent the rest of the class trying to cool herself off. She tried paying attention to the lecture but Heloise's angry and hurt eyes kept haunting her. Even worse was when she felt a pair of eyes on the back of her head the entire lecture. She dared not turn. The fear crippled her from the inside. 

She was glad when the lecture got over. She crossed her arms on the table and put her head on it. The day was already turning out to be terrible. Now she just had to get through the rest of her day. She got up and started to put her things in the bag. A hand landed on the desk and left a note. The blonde-haired girl walked out of the class without looking back.

Marianne crumpled the note and threw it in the dustbin without a second thought.


	9. The Reveal

Marianne sat with crossed arms and a pout on her face. She closed her Physics book shut and threw it in the bag. A heavy sigh escaped her mouth while she shook her head. 

She turned and walked towards the dustbin. Marianne had missed her aim and the note had fallen outside. She bent down and picked up the note. When she opened it, it read: _Meet me after school in the playground - H.M._

Marianne was vexed. The girl hadn't even asked her to meet her. She _told_ her to meet her. The sheer audacity seethed Marianne. She knew she should have left the note where it belonged. Marianne crumpled the note again but this time put it one of her side pockets.

\---

The next class that day was Computer Science Lab. Heloise walked in late again but she didn't pull off one of her stunts. She instead asked the professor to let her in though It wasn't very polite. But it was agreeable considering Heloise's calibre. Marianne was mildly surprised. But this didn't undo how Heloise had behaved so far. 

She took a seat, two away from Marianne, though staying away from the black-haired girl's sight. Marianne didn't know if she felt uncomfortable or thankful. She glanced at Heloise from time to time. She couldn't digest the fact that Heloise was the one ignoring her now.

When the lab got over Heloise walked away her eyes fixed at the door. She didn't even spare a look at the green-eyed girl. Marianne felt her heart drop inside.

\---

Marianne and Nicole were sitting in the cafeteria. Nicole sipped her juice while Marianne told her everything about what took place in the locker room earlier in the morning. 

"Well that explains why she isn't here for lunch today."

Marianne ignored her comment and passed her the note. "She left this on the table after Physics class" she said.

Marianne observed Nicole as she read the note. 

"Are you going to meet her?" Nicole asked.

"I'm still thinking about it." Marianne said truthfully.

"What are you thinking about?"

"If I should meet her." Marianne giggled at her own silliness. Nicole rolled her eyes.

"Tell me" Nicole said kindly.

"I don't know. I think I'm scared."Marianne said trying to reflect on her thoughts..

"Scared of what?"

"Uncertainty I think." said Marianne and buried her face in her hands. She was really flustered about this situation

Nicole comforted Marianne by putting a hand around her shoulders. 

"Maybe you should hear out what she has to say" suggested Nicole. "And then decide what you want to do next."

After some thought Marianne said in a hushed tone"Yeah sounds like a good idea. I think I'll meet her."

"Okay. But, bear this in mind" Nicole cautioned "Before you judge her remember that she has a story of her own. Be receptive to it."

Marianne looked at Nicole fondly. "When did you become so philosophical?" 

"Oh shut up" said Nicole planting a kiss on the side of her forehead.

\---

Marianne was struggling with maths problems. She felt she was running out of time with each question. Her inability to focus was disturbing her calculations. Before she knew, the lecture had ended. It was sooner than she had expected. She kept checking her watch hoping it would slow down but it had ticked at lightning speed.

Marianne shuddered when the final bell rang. She stayed put to her seat as she watched the blonde exit the class. Her head was spinning and the chatter around her was amplifying her headache. She tried to calm herself down by ruffling her hair. Nicole came from behind and occupied the empty seat beside her. 

"You okay?" she asked. 

Marianne gulped and shook her head in response. Nicole put her hands on Marianne's knees and stayed with her till she was ready to leave for her meet..

\---

Marianne and Nicole were both walking towards the playground. The black-haired girl was shivering even though the sun was directly on her. She rubbed her hands together to soothe her nerves. 

Marianne spotted Heloise leaning against a tree with her one of her hands in her jeans pocket while the other was scrolling through her phone. 

"I'll see you later." said Marianne.

"It'll be alright" Nicole said placing her hands on the side of her arm to calm her and then parted ways.

Marianne walked towards Heloise and stood in front of her. 

"Hey" said Marianne

Heloise looked up from her phone."You came." she said half-surprised.

"You weren't expecting me to?" asked Marianne.

"Honestly? No." confessed Heloise "Shall we walk?"

Marianne nodded in response. Heloise leaned away from the tree and both of them started walking side by side.

"Before I say anything I need you to promise me not to tell anyone what I tell you." Heloise said

Marianne nodded her head and said "Okay"

"Say you swear" said Heloise looking Marianne directly into the eyes.

Marianne felt her heart pump faster than usual. "I swear" she said.

Heloise stopped walking and took a deep breath before letting it out. "Professor Marchand is my mother." 

Marianne stared at her expressionless. But in her head, she was already filling the blanks for her theories. Her head was spinning again.

"Are you not surprised?" asked Heloise, amazed at Marianne reaction.

"No. Not really. I think I already knew" said Marianne flatly.

"How?" Heloise asked astonished.

"You both have the same eyes." Marianne said looking at Heloise directly in hers.

Heloise looked at her dumbfounded. Then a small smile crept up her face. But it quickly disappeared.

"Okay. So here goes. You ready?"

Marianne wasn't sure she was but she still nodded her head.

"So my mother and I shifted here two weeks back. I had to apply to a new school and everything. My mother gave me the application form and asked me to fill it. She told me to pick in Computers as the extra elective. I didn't want to take up Computers. And we had a huge fight on it." she said with visible anger in her face.

"So why did you?" Marianne questioned a little confused.

"I didn't. I filled up the application form for the school with Economics as the elective. I then gave it to my mother since she offered to submit it." Heloise said and took a deep breath " But she went behind my back and made changes to it. She switched Economics with Computers before submitting." 

Marianne gasped. "What?" she said incredulously. 

"Yeah and this was all against my will." Heloise's voice cracked."I didn't know even it till the first day of class. She called me to her office and told me. By then it was too late for me to do anything."

"Trusting her was my mistake. I should have seen it coming." Heloise said regretfully.

Marianne was shell shocked on hearing this. She felt upset that Heloise was going through this but even more about the way she treated her. Nicole's wise words came flashing back to her mind.

"But doesn't you father work in the art industry? Doesn't he support you?" asked Marianne.

"He agrees with my mother on this. My dad is actually a painter and he runs a side business to sustain himself. He's been in this industry long enough to know how brutal it is and he does everything to keep me away from it. In fact, both of them are hell-bent on keeping my away from arts." Heloise said with a heavy voice.

She continued "My mother has always been too controlling of our lives. She always dictated how things should be. And I can't stand it anymore. That's why I behave like that in the lecture. It's my way of rebelling against her. Honestly, she had it coming after she betrayed me."

"Do you think being passive-aggressive is helping you? You still are stuck with this subject till the end of the year." asked Marianne concerned about Heloise.

"At least it'll let her know she can't control me anymore."

"You do understand that you are putting her reputation on the line?" said Marianne.

"I know. But I don't know what else to do." said Heloise and sat down on the bench near her.

"If the whole school comes to know who you are..."

"No one can know."Heloise gritted through her teeth"You promised not to tell anyone" 

"I'm not going to. But in case they find out then the consequences..."

"I DON"T CARE" she yelled. Her whole face was red. She covered her face with her hands and burst into tears letting out all the built-up frustration inside her. 

Marianne sat down on the bench beside her. She put an arm around her shoulder and squeezed it. She slowly rubbed her upper back trying to ease her pain.

"My mother annoys me to the core, but I do care about her. I don't want anything to happen to her."Heloise's voice cracked"I just wish she would listen to me".

"I understand what you're trying to say" said Marianne hoping it would comfort the girl knowing she was not alone.

"I'm sorry for unloading all of this on you." said Heloise 

"Don't be. I'm glad you did." said Marianne and she meant every word of it."I can't imagine what you are going through. You're so strong."

Heloise's eyes were red with tears falling down her face. Marianne gently rubbed her thumb on her cheeks and wiped them away. Heloise looked into green-eyes. The blue-eyes had a certain softness and tranquillity to them. Heloise had exposed a small part of her vulnerability and Marianne wanted to protect it at all costs.

"You look like a tomato," said Marianne trying to lighten the mood. 

Heloise had a wide grin on her face. It sent a warmth all over Marianne's body. She realised how much she missed it only when she saw it. Her one wish was to never see Heloise stop smiling.

"Shall we head home?" Heloise asked.

"Yes it's been a long day." said Marianne and got up. She waited for Heloise to stand up. She was rubbing her eyes and wiping off the tears from her face. Heloise then got up and they both made their way towards the main gate. Marianne stopped at the entrance and turned towards Heloise.

"Will you practice with me tomorrow?" asked Marianne.

"How could I not?" Heloise said with a smile on her face and glint in her eyes.


	10. The Scare

Marianne checked her watch. 7:23. She smiled to herself. She was early today. She opened the door to the court. No one was there. She placed kept her bags down and sat down on one of the benches. 

Suddenly she heard a sharp whistle reverberate through the court. Marianne jumped and she got goosebumps on her hand. She looked around desperately to see who it was.

"Oi here" she heard someone yell from behind her.

It was Heloise. She was sitting on one of the last seats on the court.

"Come up here" she yelled.

Marianne sprinted her way up to her. Heloise had a pad in her lap in which she was sketching.

"Are you this early everyday?" enquired Marianne.

"Mostly. But I'm a little late today. I usually come by 7:15"

"Why would you come so early?"

"Because it's peaceful here. No constant voices in my ears" said Heloise .

Marianne didn't know how to react to that so she just gave her an awkward smile.

"Will you be my muse, miss?" Heloise asked out of nowhere.

"Me?" said Marianne with surprise in her voice.

"No I'm asking the damn pole" she said sarcastically. Marianne chortled.

"Pose for me" said Heloise seriously.

Marianne shook her head which caused all her hair to fall in front of her face. "Is this good enough for you?" she asked laughingly.

"Good lord" she heard Heloise say.

The next thing she knew there were hands in her hair. It was pushing her hair back as gently as possible. Marianne could feel Heloise's fingers run through her scalp. Marianne moved a little unable to contain the tingling sensations it sent throughout her body. 

"Don't move" Heloise commanded and touched her shoulders. 

Heloise then proceeded to set Marianne's hair while she tried to stay still. She slowly tucked Marianne's lock of hair behind her ear. A small smile crept upon her face. Marianne tensed when she felt a hand near her earlobe. 

Suddenly the door burst open. Both of them were startled at the intrusion. Marianne saw a short dark-haired girl enter.

Marianne immediately squatted on the ground and pulled Heloise down with her.

"Why are we squatting?" asked Heloise. 

Marianne put her hand on Heloise's mouth. "Because we are going to scare Sophie. She didn't see us" she whispered.

A villainous smile crept on Heloise's face. She gave her a thumbs up. 

"Follow me" whispered Marianne.

Marianne slowly made her way down the stairs, stepping quietly on her toes. Sophie had was sitting on the bench with her back towards them. Marianne was almost near Sophie when Heloise stubbed her toes on one of the corners. Heloise didn't make a noise but the clashing sound gave them away. The girl turned but Marianne still jumped on her. Sophie shrieked to the depths of hell. 

"You're the worst Marianne" she said her hands across her chest now and trying to sound angry. Marianne and Heloise were guffawing. While they were laughing their teammates slowly started pouring into the court. The last person to enter through those doors was Coach Armand. 

"It's nice to see everyone here on time for once," he said giving a look to Marianne and Sophie. Marianne had a cheeky smile on her face. Sophie was red.

"Start warming up and do the drills" he said."Amelie will lead today."

They all warmed up and did their drills. As per their agreement, Marianne and Heloise practised together. They were both having a good time smashing the ball and teasing each other. Suddenly they heard the coach call them to gather around.

"I thought we'd do something a little different today." he said "How about beach volleyball?"

Everyone chorused in excitement. They all said screamed yes in unison.

"Marianne, Sophie and Amelie go get the cones," he said throwing the key to Marianne. Marianne caught it with both her hands. 

They didn't wait for a second to dash to the sports equipment room. They three came running back as fast as they could with four cones each in their hands and balancing on between their chin and neck. 

The others watched them as they set the cones on the court. There were six cones along the length of the court and one on the breadth in which bisected it in between. The coach measured the length of the beach volleyball court with his legs, making a few adjustments here and there. 

"That looks good" he said "Now let's decide the teams."

He put Marianne and Sophie together. Sylvie was paired up with Amelie. Heloise was paired up with Annette. Therese was paired up with one of the juniors. 

"We'll switch it up after each round" he declared.

"Now who wants to go first." he asked. Everyone put their hands up desperately. Some of them were frantically waving their hands. The coach shook his head.

"Each pair choose a representative for your team. The first two to finish two complete rounds will play first. The rest will be the order you finish in. If anyone cheats then you'll automatically be pushed to the last."

Marianne, Heloise, Sylvie, Therese and one junior stepped forward. They all made their way to the service line. 

"Ready?" the coach asked.

"Yes sir" they all responded.

"On your marks. Set. Go!"

She pushed the legs on the ground to get more force which helped her get the best start. She dashed as fast as could. Two turns down, Marianne was still in the lead. She was breathing heavily trying to get in as much air as possible. She quickly cut the third turn still in the lead. On the fourth turn, she felt a body beside her. 

She could hear everyone scream.

"Go Marainne" 

"Faster Heloise"

"Sylvie you can do this"

There were 60 meters left to run and Marianne had a good feeling. But a second later a body was right beside her with a slight lead. Marianne saw blonde hair waving in the air through her peripheral vision. Marianne's heart was pumping rapidly into her bloodstream. She involuntarily lengthened her strides. She could feel Heloise's deep breaths. They both turned another corner. But Heloise had cut it too long and now Marianne had the lead by half a legs length. This error was more than enough for Marianne. She knew she was going to win this one. She held the lead in the next corner but Heloise was really close. Heloise managed to overtake the black-haired girl.

Marianne felt her heart sink but they had reached the corner again by then. Marianne took advantage and squeezed through. Their hands clashed together. Their feet would have too but the blonde slowed her pace a little. Marianne held it till the last corner and crossed the finish line first. Heloise was quarter of a stride behind her. Sylvie finished third. The two juniors were going to play last.

In normal cases, Marianne would have been ecstatic and would be celebrating her win. But instead, she walked over to Heloise who was now bent down on her knees. Heloise was as red as an apple.

"You slowed down, didn't you?" asked Marianne.

"You would have fallen down" said Heloise

"Thanks" said Marianne and patted her on the back.

"Anytime" Heloise said trying to catch her breath.

"Marianne and Heloise will play first" the coach declared. "Winners choose. Serve or receive?"

Marianne looked at Heloise. She told her to go ahead.

"Serve" said Marianne without a second thought.

"Which side do you want?" he asked Amelie.

"This side" said Amelie pointing to the side which they were standing on.

Marianne and Sophie made their way to the other side. The blue eyes were on Marianne as she made her way. Marianne could feel the fire scorch her.

"First to five points wins" he said and gave the ball to Sophie.

"Pass the ball" said Marianne to Sophie.

"Serve to Amelie" said Sophie passing her the ball. Marianne acknowledged. It was the smart thing to do.

Marianne walked to the service line. Heloise and Amelie had taken their positions. Marianne threw the ball up with a good height, jumped and hit it. The ball went flying over the net to Amelie. Amelie passed the ball to Heloise. Heloise lifted it. Amelie cleared it using an overhead pass. The ball went over the net and Marianne received it. She passed it to Sophie. Sophie lifted the ball for Marianne. The ball was short and near the net. Heloise was ready to block it and jumped when Marianne did. But Marianne managed to place the ball and spike it. Amelie dived to retrieve it but it went flying and Heloise couldn't pick it up.

1-0. Marianne leads

"Are you scared to serve to me?" chided Heloise through the net. She had an arrogant smirk on her face.

"Will you be able to handle it?" Marianne rebuked. 

Heloise had a smug look on her face which ignited Marianne. She walked to the service line giving Sophie a five on the way back. 

"Serving to Heloise?" she asked. 

"Yes" Marianne whispered. 

Marianne threw the ball up at the perfect height and hit a bullet serve. It went straight to Heloise as she promised. It hit Heloise's forearm but the impact was too strong. The ball came to the other side of the court but landed outside.

2-0. Marianne leads

There were claps all around her. "Good serve Marianne" someone yelled from the outside.

Heloise didn't look too happy. Marianne now had a smug look on her face. She ran to fetch the ball which was now near the net.

"Should I serve softer?" Marianne mocked her. 

Heloise scoffed. "Come at me."

Marianne walked to the service line feeling. Sophie gave her a punch on her upper arm. Marianne smirked at Heloise hyping up Marianne. She threw the ball up again and smashed it. It was a little slower than the previous one but nevertheless fast enough for most players to pick up properly. It went to the right side of Heloise. Heloise turned her body and bent down to her knees. She controlled the ball as passed she it to Amelie. Amelie made her the perfect lift near the net. It would have been easily blockable but Marianne wasn't ready. Heloise made no errors in finishing it off.

2-1. Marianne leads

"Good smash Heloise"

Marianne cursed under her breath for not blocking the ball. "Don't be lazy" she scolded herself and clenched her fists tight. 

Heloise had a satisfied look on her face. Sophie in that time passed the ball to the other side of the court. Amelie picked up the ball and passed to it Heloise who was walking to the service line. Heloise grabbed the ball and got into position. She tossed the ball in the air and smashed it hard. It came quite fast towards Sophie. Sophie received the ball beautifully and passed it to Marianne. It was very close to the net. Marianne leapt and tapped the ball, softly, placing it tactfully. Amelie, who was near the net dived to receive it and successfully passed it to Heloise. Heloise lifted it up for her near the net. Amelie skillfully threw it to the corner of the court. Sophie wasn't ready for it. The ball hit the ground.

2-2 Tied

Marianne raised an eyebrow to Heloise in a challenge to serve her. Heloise raised her eyebrow back with a smirk on her face. She stood at the serving line not breaking eye contact with Marianne. She then sent a blitzing serve. Marianne's arms shook and burned when she received it. But she managed to control it and pass it to Sophie who had to run a little to lift in up for Marianne. It was a little behind the net but she managed to smash it by curving her back. Heloise received it and passed it to Amelie. Amelie again lifted the perfect ball for her. Marianne was ready this time. Heloise smashed the ball hard but didn't angle it properly. Marianne's strong arms blocked the ball and it fell on the other side.

3-2. Marianne leads

"Good block Marianne"

"It's okay Heloise, next time" someone spurred the blonde.

Marianne could hear Heloise mutter under her breath. Heloise picked up the ball and passed it to Marianne. Marianne passed it to Sophie. Sophie hit an overarm serve. Heloise received it. Amelie lifted the ball near the net. Marianne was ready. But Heloise softly shoved the ball over Marianne's head and it fell behind her.

3-3. Tied

There were waves of scream around them. Heloise had her arms lifted up and she was encouraging everyone around her.

"Lovely Lovely Beauty beauty oooohhhhhh" someone sang their team slogan.

"What a placement of the ball!!"

Marianne gave Heloise a smile. It was a clever play and Marianne made a mental note to borrow it from Heloise to use on later. Heloise let her hand out but Marianne passed Amelie the ball now smirking at Heloise.

"Next time I'll be ready" Marianne she told Heloise. Heloise gave her a smile in response.

Amelie served next but the ball hit the net. 

4-3. Marianne leads. 

Marianne got the ball. Marianne threw the ball in the air and smashed it. It was one of the fastest serves that she had ever sent down. It went straight to Heloise. Heloise managed to receive the ball but it flew to the other side of the court.

"Leave Leave" shouted Marianne and picked up the ball and passed it to Sophie. Sophie again made a short ball for Marianne. Amelie was at the net. It touched Amelie's fingers and went to Heloise. Heloise dived to retrieve the ball. Amelie ran to pass it back. She gave it a good lift. Heloise smashed it. Sophie bent her knees received it and passed it to Marianne. Marianne lifted for Sophie. Sophie threw the ball to the corner of the court. Heloise passed the ball to Amelie. Amelie lifted for her but it was a bad lift. Heloise had to arch her back and smash. It went as a curve over the net.

"Mine" Marianne yelled and passed the ball to Sophie. Sophie created for her the perfect short ball. Marianne didn't waste it. She smashed it as hard as she could. Amelie blocked the ball but it went flying to the backside of the court. Heloise sprinted and dived to lift the ball. It had a little bit of height. Amelie was already running. She hit the ball as far she could and it went to the other side the court. It was very close to the net. Marianne leapt and spiked the ball into the ground.

5-3. Marianne wins!

"Yesss" Marianne exulted and pumped her fists in the air. Sophie was jumping joyously. They both high fived each other. 

Heloise and Amelie exited the court while the other team came in. Heloise's eyes didn't shift from Marianne as she took a place outside the court. The blue-eyed girl was eager to watch Marianne play. The hazel eyes gleamed, which were even more fervid to put on a show for the blonde.


	11. Intrigue

Marianne and Sophie were standing on the sidelines beside Heloise while they watched the other teams compete against each other. 

"Was it just luck that all your serves crossed the net when I was playing against you?" Heloise taunted her. 

"Don't be ridiculous" Marianne retorted.

A couple of her serves had hit the net while some of the other had fallen outside. It was mostly because Marianne was trying to hit them as hard as she could when a simple placement of the ball would have done the job. Heloise's smug face, whenever she looked at her, didn't help much either. But in the end, Marianne and Sophie had managed to win against every team that had played against them. The coach had asked them to stay outside for the few games while the others played. 

"At least I didn't lose, like you." she reminded the blonde "5-3. Remember the humiliation."

"I'll get you in the next game" she challenged Marianne.

"Keep talking" Marianne jested her four fingers fluttering over her thumb trying to mimic chattering.

Heloise scowled and her nostrils flared. She turned her face away to watch the game in front of her. Marianne had a smug smile on her face now and she turned her face to observe the game too.

\---

Heloise and Marianne didn't get to play against each other again as Marianne and Sophie were not allowed back on court till all the girls got a couple of chances to play. By then practice session got over and all of them were changing in the locker rooms.

Sophie was complaining about how she didn't get another chance to play again. Amelie and Anette pointed out that she'd already played four continuous games while the rest of them had played lesser. 

"We should team up together sometime" Heloise said to Marianne who leaning against the wall with her right leg pushing the wall.

"And who will we play against?" asked Marianne."We both smash and lift. Sylvie is the only other person on the team who can do that. Also, we are both the tallest out of them all."

"How about Coach Armand?"

Marianne's eyes widened. She grabbed Heloise by the shoulder and shook her "Why didn't you say this earlier?" Marianne cribbed."It would have been so much fun."

"It just came to my head" said Heloise apologetically.

Marianne sighed and looked at the empty washroom that Therese had just exited."I'm going to take a shower. Don't leave without me."

Heloise grinned "Never." 

\---

The Chemistry lecture was turning out to be quite boring. Marianne checked her watch. 11:53. There was still about twenty minutes left for the lecture to get over. She glanced at Heloise was leaning against the wall her pointy chin facing the roof. 

Heloise drew her head down. Her eyes staggered to open as at the light hit her eyes. They fully opened to see the green-eyes staring directly at her.

Heloise picked up her pencil and notebook. She parted her lips and mouthed "May I?" 

Marianne felt her teeth touch her lower lip as a soft whisper escaped her mouth "Yes"

Heloise placed the pad on her laps and the pencil between her left index finger and her thumb. She twirled the pencil a couple of times before looking at Marianne.

Heloise's perfect almond-shaped eyes were still as she observed the green-eyed girl. The balance in the grey and blue in her eye fluctuated whenever she was unable to memorize a feature. Her pupils dilated when the sun illuminated Marianne's fair face. Or was it because of the way her green eyes turned hazel when the first drop of honey-coloured rays lay on her face? Heloise bit her lower lip and looked down to make some languid strokes. When she looked back up there was a quiver on her upper lip that Marianne would have typically missed. But her eyes hadn't drifted from Heloise for even a second. 

The hooded eyelids almost disappeared when Marianne curved her lips. The bushy dark-brown eyebrows furrowed creating a narrow canal between the crease where her nose and forehead connected. Heloise's tongue rolled out lazily on her lower lips before her perfect set of front teeth captured the plump lower epidermis. Marianne saw her chest heave as she took a deep breath displacing the few soft curls resting on her shoulders, looking down again to make definite strokes. The brows still remained furrowed as the lush red colour rose on her fair cheeks. Heloise desperately glanced at Marianne, her lips now pursed before carefully placing a few more strokes. 

Heloise placed her pencil down, her vocal cords vacillating just once, trying to distract Marianne's attention from her quivering fingers. Marianne concentrated her focal point on Heloise's sharp collarbone as she observed her shaky hands move to close the gap between them to cross her fingers. Her own breath became dense as Heloise decreased the distance between them by moving her face forwards and at the same time hauling her handmade stand to rest her chin on. Heloise raised the eyebrow which was hiding the pinkish-white scar giving away her intrigue in Marianne.

Marianne could feel the superficial nerve on her neck and wrist oscillate faster than she could have kept count. Heloise's lips parted to let out warm air. Her nose twitched as her long index finger traced her jawline. Marianne felt her own fingers tremble as a drop of sweat dripped down the side of her brows. Her own lips were parted but it wasn't only because she was troubled.

A small dark spot was noticeable on the cartilage of Heloise's ears as she slowly rose up from her eye-level. She could hear whispers from Nicole's mouth which she couldn't decipher. Heloise was standing tall now, her arms by her side. 

"The answer is O2" she said before she placed her palms on her chair, her fingers gripping the sides to drag the seat towards her. Heloise's eyes were glistening when she turned towards Marianne. Her lips curved into a smile as the professor left the class.

\---

"Thanks for telling me the answer." Heloise said turning her face towards Nicole. 

Marianne turned her own face towards Nicole to see her nodding her head.

Marianne realised she was breathing heavily through her mouth. She grabbed her bottle of water and took a few hurried sips. Heloise was jumping on her toes, shifting her weight from one leg to another. 

"I have some work to do" Heloise said flinging her bags on her shoulder "I'll see you later in Computers" and scampered out of the class.

"So I'm guessing yesterday went well" said Nicole her eyebrows now raised.

"There's more to her than I thought" said Marianne, her eyes still on the door.

"How much do you want to bet that she'll come late to class again?" asked Nicole.

"I don't want to bet on her" Marianne said solemnly.


	12. Discretion

Marianne and Nicole were seated in the middle seats. Nicole asked Marianne details about what happened between her and Heloise, but Marianne told her it wasn't something of hers to share. Nicole didn't pursue the conversation further as she firmly believed in boundaries and personal space. As long as Marianne seemed fine with Heloise, it didn't matter to her either.

Marianne checked her watch. 11:28. There were still two minutes for her class to start. The professor hadn't arrived yet. Marianne put her legs on the table and leaned on the chair. Her pushed off the desk to leave herself suspended as she tried to balance the chair on the pivot.

"You'll fall someday. Mark my words. " remarked Nicole.

"There's no way that's going to happen" said Marianne using her utmost focus to achieve perfect balance.

"The professor is here." said Nicole

Marianne jerked and the chair thumped on the floor as she tried not to fall down. She'd garnered the attention of the whole class. She pretended as if it never happened.

"She's late again" Nicole commented to Marianne.

At that exact moment, Heloise entered the class. She walked by the professor's table and was making her way towards the seats.

"Young lady, you may be forgetting something." the professor said her arms now crossed.

Heloise had a smug look on her face which somewhat terrified Marianne. She turned around and said in a sickly sweet voice "But I'm on time."

Marianne checked her watch. 11:30. She couldn't help but grin. Heloise wasn't late at all. The professor checked her watch too. She then looked up, defeated. Heloise didn't wait to make eye contact with her mother. With that Heloise turned about and marched with an air of accomplishment. Her eyes roared in victory. She made her way towards where Marianne was sitting. The black-haired girl had a seat empty next to her.

"Can I sit here?" Heloise asked.

"It's a free country, ma'am. You may sit wherever you want to." Marianne patronized her.

"You need to move your property for that." Heloise said pointing at the desk.

Marianne's bags were scattered all over the table. "Oh yeah, that" she said and proceeded to remove them and put them on the floor. Heloise put down her own bags and sat on her seat.

Marianne tore a piece of paper and wrote _Genius_ on it. She folded the paper and threw it on Heloise. It hit her chin and fell down on her table. Heloise gave her an angry look. But she picked up the note and read it. As soon she saw what was written, an evil grin appeared on her face which she tried to suppress by coughing softly with her hands. But her eyelids were turned upwards which gave away all her hands were trying to disclose. Her eyes had a miraculous shine to them.

The professor started with the lecture and Marianne paid full attention to it. So did Heloise. It surprised Marianne a little. She'd always assumed in the past that Heloise never listened in this class.

Halfway through, Marianne's stomach grumbled. She remembered the snack that her mother had packed for her. Just thinking about the sweet nectar of the grapes, made Marianne's mouth water. But she didn't want to interrupt the class. So she started fidgeting with her pen trying to distract herself from the belly filler that was in her bag.

It worked fine, till the time Heloise decided to bring out her own box of food. She deftly dove into her bag and held the box between her thumb and other fingers. She then put it on her lap, using the table as a cover to hide it. She then slowly opened the lid and slid it under the box. The box was filled to the brim with dark red watermelons. Marianne salivated at the sight of it.

Heloise bent her body under the table and popped one piece in her mouth. She then slowly cam back up, using her hands to cover her face. She chewed as slowly as possible in an effort to not be caught.

Marianne was staring at Helosie's mouth in desperation as her stomach was making thundering noises. Heloise turned her face a little and caught Marianne eyegasming her food. She smiled at her and pointed her fingers to the watermelon.

"You want?" she asked with shiny eyes.

Marianne shook her head. Heloise shrugged her shoulders meant _your choice_ and continued to devour the tender watermelon pieces.

The more she looked at Heloise the harder it was for her to keep her willpower intact. Soon all of Marianne's self-control was shattered to bits. She dived into her bag and got out her own box and opened it. The beautiful juicy grapes were calling out to her to eat them.

Marianne licked her lips. She picked up one single grape and hid it behind her palm. She quickly brought her elbow towards the mouth and threw it in. She kept her hands near her mouth, mimicking Heloise's actions. She noticed through the corner of her eye that Heloise had eyes on her grapes. Marianne returned the favour by asking her if she wanted some. Heloise politely declined the offer by shaking her head.

Marianne and Heloise both cheekily grinned as they popped their respective fruits in their mouth from time to time. Marianne was more careful about the professor not catching them, but Heloise was stuffing watermelon cubes without fear.

Suddenly a note fell on her table. Marianne opened it:

 _You'll die if you get caught._ _  
Also, give me some grapes. I'm hungry._

Marianne grinned at the note and turned to face Nicole who was pleading with beady black eyes. Marianne took a quick look at the professor. She was typing on her laptop. Taking this golden opportunity she put her box between her and Nicole while the wavy-haired girl picked up some grapes. Marianne had her eyes on the petite lady. The professor suddenly looked up. Nicole froze but Marianne quickly retracted her hands, thanking her amazing reflex for it. But the professor had already caught her red-handed.

"Marianne can you please come to the board and write the output for this program" she said with a poker face and pointed her fingers to the screen.

Nicole was alarmed. Heloise was laughing with her mouth covered. Her whole face was red. Marianne felt her whole body burn and shiver. She quickly closed her box and put it on her seat and covered it with her bag. She still had a grape in her mouth which she had to swallow. She put her hand on her mouth pretending to wipe off sweat and quickly gulped the piece of fruit.

Marianne then took a deep breath before going through the program on the screen. It was about a pattern. She stood up and made her way down to the board. The professor didn't flinch her eyes from Marianne for even a second. Marianne's heartbeat increased rapidly. When she'd reached the table, the professor handed her the marker. There was something intimidating in the way she looked at her. Marianne remembered it was the exact same feeling she felt when she first spoke to Heloise.

Marianne wrote the answer on the board and looked at the professor for confirmation. The professor examined it for a few seconds before nodding her head.

"Today is a very pleasant day, don't you think? The air smells quite fruity." she said to Marianne but it made loud enough for the whole class to hear.

Marianne would have laughed but she knew better. She gave the professor a smile and turned around and almost ran to her seat.

Even after Marianne had taken her place, Heloise was still laughing. Marianne swore she saw tears in her eyes. She noticed there were two notes on her table.

One said _I'm sorry._

The other said _BRAVO. Now pass me some grapes :P_

It didn't take long to figure out who sent was which. She glared at Heloise. Heloise returned it with an abnormally sweet smile. Marianne didn't dare to eat another piece for the rest of the class while Heloise shamelessly munched on hers.

_\---_

Marianne and Heloise were sitting in the cafeteria. Nicole had a team meeting so she couldn't stay behind to have food with them.

"Here take your grapes" said Marianne pushing it across the table.

Heloise was laughing uncontrollably.

"You're such a noob. Who gets caught while eating in class?" Heloise jeered.

"I didn't get caught while eating." Marianne corrected her" I was passing it to Nicole."

Heloise taunted her "Why are your passes so troublesome? And I don't mean just in class." her eyebrows now raised and a smirk on her face

Marianne pouted her face in indignation. "Speaks the queen of passes. Guess who couldn't return my serves?" Marianne jested back.

Heloise was laughing. "True" she said. "You do have an amazing serve." she added "Provided it lands inside the court"

Marianne scowled at Heloise but she couldn't keep it for long. She couldn't help but join Heloise and her contagious laughter.

"Are you free tomorrow?" asked Heloise.

Marianne thought about it for a while. "I don't think I have anything to do in the evening." she said. "Why do you ask?"

"Do you want to play volleyball in the park with me?" she asked a little shyly.

"Do you have a ball?"

"Yeah at home."

"Okay. Sounds good. What time?" asked Marianne.

Her eyes were gleaming."I'll let you know."Heloise said.

"Can you give me your number? I don't have it" the blonde asked.

Her heart began beating unusually fast. She cleared her throat a few times to bring it under control. "Give me your phone" said Marianne. 

Heloise took out her phone from her jeans pocket and handed it to Marianne. Marianne noticed the blonde's hands were shaking even though it was just the start of autumn.

"I can't enter my number" said Marianne.

"Why?" asked a confused Heloise.

"Because you didn't unlock it."she said, her eyes mocking Heloise for the blunder. Heloise went red in the face out of embarrassment. Marianne started laughing. She quickly took the phone out of Marianne's hands, unlocked it and gave it to her.

Heloise was staring at her earnestly as she entered her number. She fumbled the numbers a few times and had to keep backspacing it to get it right. When she was done she held the phone out for Heloise to take.

"Finally butterfingers. I thought it'd take you the whole day." remarked Heloise with a grin.

Marianne rolled her eyes trying to mask the blush on her face.


	13. Goofballs

It was Friday night and Marianne was watching TV. Her phone suddenly vibrated. She picked up her phone to see it was a text from an unknown number. 

Unknown : Hey. It's Heloise. 

M : I'm sorry miss but I don't know any Heloise

Marianne was chuckling to herself.

Unknown : Marianne stop joking I know it's you

Unknown : Or maybe not

Unknown: I'm sorry please forgive me

Unknown: This stupid girl probably gave me the wrong number

M : Who are you calling stupid?!?

Unknown : I knew it was you :')

Unknown : You almost had me fooled there you know

Marianne saved Heloise's number on her phone. 

H : Nice dp

M : Thanks. Yours is nice too

Marianne knew it's was an unsaid rule that you have to compliment someone's display if they compliment yours. But it helped that Heloise's was actually pretty. Her display was of a close up of her with the cheekiest smile on her face.

H : Are we still up for tomorrow?

M : Yeah. What time tho?

H : 4:30 sound okay?

M : Yep. Do you want someone else to come too? I could ask Sophie and Amelie

Heloise didn't reply for a few seconds

H : sure :)

M : Okay wait a sec

Marianne opened the group chat tyrannous trio

M : You guys free tomorrow evening?

S : Yeah I think so. What's up?

A : My parents and I are going camping

M : Okay have fun

M : Soph you wanna play volleyball with me and Heloise?

S : YESSSSSSSSS

S : What time???

M : 4:30

S : I'm in!!

A: Have fun guys I'll see you on Monday

M: Ok byeee

Marianne opened the chat with Heloise 

M : Sophie's in. Amelie has to be somewhere

H : Alright I'll see you tomorrow

_Marianne sent a location_

M: This park okay for you?

H: Yeah I can make it

M: I'll see you there then?

H: Yep

M: ok goodnight sweet dreams

H: You too :)

\---

Marianne was panting as she was running towards the park. She checked her watch. 4:35. She spotted a familiar figure in a blue t-shirt with half sleeves and dark blue shorts. Her blonde hair was up in a ponytail. She was holding the ball between the concave of her elbow and her hips and had an olive green bag on her shoulders.

Marianne stopped in front of her. "Sorry I'm late." she said.

"I thought you pranked me by sending me the wrong location." Heloise grinned. 

"Don't think the thought didn't cross my mind." said Marianne cheekily. Heloise punched her jokingly on her arms.

"By the way, Sophie just texted me a few minutes before back saying she's not coming, today" said Marianne.

Heloise's eyes instantly lit up. Marianne didn't notice it but she had a small smile on her face. Heloise opened the gate to the park for Marianne. 

"After you" she said chivalrously. Marianne led the way as they both made their way inside the park. She picked a tree to put their bags under. 

"Let's warmup " said Heloise.

"Coach is not here you know." Marianne pointed out.

"True" Heloise said with a smile. "But I do not want to end up injuring any part of my body."

"Yeah me either" said Marianne shrugging her shoulders.

"Exactly. So let's start."

Marianne put on a dejected face. She really didn't like warming up at all.

"Don't be such a lazy bum." she teased the green-eyed girl.

"Alright" she agreed reluctantly.

"We'll run till the tree with the yellow flowers there and then run back to this one" Heloise said pointing to a bunch of trees with yellow flowers which were a little far away.

"Only five laps and no more." Marianne said holding her four fingers and thumb up.

"Okay. The best of five wins and gets to smash for 5 minutes straight. Deal?" the blonde placed the wager.

"You're going to regret this" said Marianne with a grin on her face. She started shaking her arms and legs to warm up her body. 

Heloise raised her eyebrows. "We'll see about that" she said and started shuffling on her toes

"I'm calling this time though" said Marianne. 

"We'll alternate after each round." Heloise countered.

"Done. Take your position" said Marianne as she got into hers. "Ready?"

"I'm always ready" said blonde her eyes gleaming at Marianne and a smug grin on her face.

Marianne had the naughtiest glint in her eye. She was waiting for this moment for days. "On your mark...Set..." Marianne paused, savouring the sweet payback to Heloise. 

"Ughh... just say it already" Heloise gritted through her teeth.

"On you mark." Marianne started again. 

But Heloise had already tripped from her position. Marianne was in splits of laughter. 

"God damn it Marianne" Heloise cursed as got into position again. 

Marianne continued "Set...Go" and they both dashed off to the other side.

\---

Marianne and Heloise were both standing under the shade of the tree and were had bent down with their hands on their knees. Marianne could hear her deep breaths superimposing with Heloise's. Sweat was trickling down their brows.

"The distance is more than I thought" remarked Marianne. 

"It's probably because we both are sprinting" said Heloise.

Marianne nodded her head "Could be" she agreed.

"We're both tied." mentioned Heloise."Whoever wins this one gets to smash first."

Marianne got into position. Heloise joined her after a couple of seconds. "Ready?" the black haired girl asked.

"Yeah." Heloise called "Ready...."

"Hey" Marianne cut her off abruptly "It's my turn to call." Marianne reminded her.

"Let's both call together" she suggested.

"No chance. We had a deal." not giving her an opportunity to negotiate.

"On your mark. Set...Go" Marianne said it as quickly as possible hoping it would throw off Heloise. Marianne gained an advantage but the swift call didn't affect Helosie's start much. Even though the black-haired girl had a lead, Heloise was just half an arm's length away from her. Marianne had the benefit of having longer strides, but Heloise moved a lot more nimbly. 

They both were neck and neck and the tree was just a couple of steps away. Marianne took in a long breath of air and put her hand out. She was so close to the tree. It would soon turn out to be a mistake as it shortened her strides and thereby slowed her down. Heloise kept up her pace and barely made grazed her fingers on the bark of the tree before Marianne did.

Marianne stopped to catch her breath. But Heloise kept running and running, her arms spread out like a bird. She was flying through the lush green grass with the backdrop of the golden ray of the sun dispersing through fluffy white clouds, colouring the light blue sky. A flock of sparrows flew above her, joining her in her celebration. 

She was yelling at the top of her lungs and was attracting the attention of a couple of passersby. Marianne sprinted after her to try to get her to stop screaming, even though she was completely out of breath. Heloise had taken a U-turn and was now running towards Marianne. When she was really close to the green-eyed girl, she jumped high into the air. As she landed on her feet, her arms fell on Marianne's shoulder. Marianne held her by the waist so that she didn't fall down just in case she lost balance. 

"That was incredible!" she yowled in the happiest way.

She continued jabbering, with her hands accentuating her emotions"I thought you were going to win. You were about to touch the tree." she put her hands in front of Marianne "But then I touched it before you. I don't know how that happened." she put her hands on her head " It was insane!" her eyes were completely wide. 

Marianne completely forgot that she was about to get Heloise to shut up and ended up joining her instead"I knowww. I put my hand out too soon. But you were faster. Great running, bud" she congratulated her.

Heloise clasped Marianne's shoulder. "Thanks" she said. "It was really really close." 

The blue-eyes were twinkling at her. The warmth in Marianne's body suddenly escalated and she knew it was not due to the intense running. The tips of Heloise's fingers brushed against the naked skin beside her shirt. Marianne felt her knees go weak. Her fingers were trembling around her waist. She loosened her grip on Heloise's sides and gently patted her curves. "We need to walk back" she breathed.

"Let's jog instead. We'll reach faster" Heloise suggested. She let go of Marianne's shoulders as the black-haired girl let go of the her waist. 

"I dare you to reach the tree before me" Marianne said mischievously. She sprinted to the other side without even bothering to look behind to see if Heloise was on her tail. By now she knew she didn't have to.

\---

Marianne set her the timer on her watch for 5 minutes before throwing it on her bag. 

"When the timer goes off I'll start smashing" she warned Heloise. 

"Till then you have to bear the brunt of mine" said Heloise smugly.

Marianne scoffed. "Brunt?" she thought to herself. She sometimes really did wonder how Heloise was so over-confident about her abilities. But she already had a plan in mind. She was going to tire Heloise out.

As Heloise promised, she sent down blistering smashes to the black-haired girl. Marianne would have been lying if she said her arms weren't burning. She returned her smashes but made sure to make her run around a lot. 

She was super glad when by the time her alarm went off. When she saw Heloise panting with her hands were on her hips, she knew her plan had worked. But that wasn't the only reason. She thought her own hands would fall off her body if she had to face Heloise for another excruciating minute.

Marianne now had the ball in her hand. She tossed it in the air and caught it as a smirk spread on her face. It was time for total annihilation. She passed the ball to Heloise. Heloise lifted the ball high in the air and got into position. Marianne smashed as hard as she could. Heloise returned the ball. Marianne sent down another one, Heloise returned the ball and it was not in Marianne's path. She adjusted to get herself underneath the ball before she hit it again.

Marianne was hitting rapid smashes at this point. She lifted the ball for Heloise and got into position. Heloise accepted the respite and hit a mighty one at Marianne. She winced but made sure Heloise didn't see it. They both sent down the as many solid back to back smashes they possibly could.

At one point Heloise squealed, not even making an effort to mask it. Marianne didn't even try to jest her on this one. Her own hands were numb. Normally Marianne would have been too stubborn on admitting her hands were hurting but this time she decided to make an exception.

"Maybe we should move back a bit" Marianne suggested politely.

For a moment she thought Heloise would jab her with some stupid comment of hers but instead, she nodded her head. "And hit a little softer. We aren't playing a match, are we?" she said holding her forehands.

"No." Marianne chuckled.

"My hands are barbequed" Heloise grinned. 

"So are mine. I think they just might be the best roast in town." Marianne said as a laugh escaped her mouth. They both moved a couple of steps back and reduced the speed of their smashes as agreed upon.

The rest of their practice session turned out to be a pleasant one. They were both laughing and giggling at each other's errors. Sometimes even jesting each other for hitting weak smashes. And to punish the other for mocking, sent down a blitzing smash once in a while. 

A few people stopped to see them playing for sometime before carrying on with what they were doing. An old couple walking by praised them while they were drinking water by saying they played really well and that they reminded them of their granddaughters. A girl jogging in the park joined them for a couple of minutes before continuing her run. 

By the time they were done the sun had turned mandarin orange. Marianne and Heloise both had an arm around each other's shoulders to support each other while they made their way towards the tree. They both were extremely tired and heaved as they lay with their backs on the warm grass, underneath the nourishing shade of the tree. 

Marianne bolstered her head by placing her palm beneath it. The cool wind brushed her cheeks and provided relief to her burning hands. She closed her eyes and uttered a small prayer to Mother Nature. The rustling of leaves carried the melodious hymns of the birds chirping around her. Soon she slipped into a deep slumber.


	14. Presence

Marianne's eyes barely opened to the silhouette of a half-turned girl, hunched over her lap, against a roseate sky. Her strawberry blonde curls drooped on her forehead and her broad shoulders. Her jawline perfectly complemented her slightly turned-up nose. Her rubicund finger elegantly hovered over her lap in an effort to rub the paper beneath her. Heloise's face slightly turned towards her. All of her facial muscles suddenly tightened. She froze. 

Marianne had never seen her this way before. She'd seen her confused and restless. She'd seen her angry and in pain. She'd seen the flicker of rage and the waves of sorrow in her eyes.

But this was completely new to Marianne. Heloise's eyes were quivering and her lips creased. Her jaw was clenched and brows corrugated. Her shoulders slouched and her hands were limp. Heloise seemed distressed.

She saw a certain vulnerability that Heloise didn't want her to see. Something that she was trying so hard to hide. Something that made her overly uncomfortable. Marianne saw fear. She saw fear in the way she sat motionless. Fear in the way she stopped blinking her eyelids. Fear in the way she stopped breathing. Why was she afraid of her?

From the corner of her eye, Marianne noticed a sheet of paper slightly protrude from her cross-legged lap. She immediately understood Heloise wanted from her. Assent.

The soft blades of the grass grazed against her cheeks as she slowly swivelled her body towards the florid girl. The dried leaves crackled beneath her as she cushioned her head with her elbow. She replicated the reassuring look she gave Heloise when she last drew her, hoping she would feel at ease.

Heloise's rigid lines under her eyes slowly softened. The tensed lips loosened, revealing her watermelon lips. Her lower jaw slackened, releasing the tension on her brows. Her clavicles became prominent as her shoulders straightened.

Marianne's lips curved at the spectacle which had unfolded in front of her. A puerile smile, sacred to her, reappeared on Heloise's face, leaving her utterly breathless. 

Marianne immediately felt the warmth radiate from Heloise. The warmth when a young'un smiles at you. The warmth you feel when you drink hot chocolate on a rainy day. The warmth when you snuggle in your blankets on a cold winter night. The warmth you feel when you cuddle with a lover, rolled up in those thick blankets.

Marianne bit her lips. She realised she'd left herself unguarded. She felt light in the head. She was floating in the air. She felt immense serenity. Serenity in how the cerulean eyes gazed upon her. 

And then they looked away. Marianne's skin seared. The heart palpitated on her chest. The rush in her veins escalated. She prayed to be venerated again. And so she was. 

Marianne felt conflicting feelings all at once. She felt tranquil and distressed. She felt safe and vulnerable. She felt calm and chaos. 

As Heloise's eyes left her body, she felt hollow. And once they were upon her, she felt effervescent. Each time Heloise's eyes drifted away from her all she wanted was to be looked upon again. 

Marianne was so engrossed in the jig between her and Heloise that she didn't notice pollen meandering in the wind settle on her eyelashes. Heloise put her pencil on the grass and inched closer towards her. She bent down slightly and put her elbows up. Marianne parted her lips and murmured a couple of incomprehensible words.

"Don't move" she hushed Marianne.

Heloise extended her hands, slowly moving her it towards her face. Marianne held her breath. Her eyelashes fluttered as Heloise's fingertips brushed against it. 

"There's pollen in your eye" she whispered.

"Why didn't you say so?" Marianne murmured.

The soft fingertips trailed along Marianne's cheekbones before cradling her half her face. 

"I didn't want your presence to leave me. Not even for a second" Heloise whispered softly, afraid of being heard. 

Marianne nestled her face onto Heloise's soothing palms, softly gazing at her. She tenderly stroked her cheek with her thumb.

"You're burning" Heloise whispered."You need water."

"No" Marianne mumbled. How was she supposed to tell her that it was the effect of her fire which is the cause of her burning? That when she looked at her she burned but when she looked away, she burned even more? And even the whole universe's water won't alleviate it?

Marianne placed her palms gently on Heloise's dorsal side, her fingers tracing patterns near her oval nails. Her fingers moved up to Heloise's wrist, her nerve endings conscious of the soft throb of Heloise's veins. The long fingers faintly trailed the line near her ear as Marianne squeezed her upper arm gently before dawdling on her chin and eventually cradling her face. Marianne felt the warmth spread as Heloise splayed her palms to cup hers. 

Heloise's alluring azure eyes, lingered, frolicking her features. The air became non-existent to Marianne's lungs. Her fingers made their way behind her neck, gently tugging the strands of golden hair.

Heloise bent down, decreasing the space between them, her eyes not breaking away from the widened hazel ones. A shiver went down her spine. The curls of her locks tingled her skin. The sweet fragrance of grass filled her lungs. Marianne could feel her soft breath on her lips.

She felt supple luscious lips on her cheek. It left a warm burn which became the epicentre of ripples throughout her body, engulfing her in flames.

She closed her eyes unable to comprehend what she was feeling. And when she did open them, Heloise was gone.


	15. Hooked

Marianne rolled herself into her thick blanket like a burrito, still shaking uncontrollably. Her eyes were wide open, staring at the ceiling. But her mind was still in the park.

She'd gotten up and yelled Heloise's name but to no avail. Her legs trembled as she made her way home. The wind was chilly against her burning body. 

Marianne closed her eyes, trying to remember her last moments with Heloise. The tender lips which touched her before leaving a pit of fire. The hazy figure with face florid and eyes closed. 

She tightented her brows, trying to focus, see a little more clearer. The blue eyes were barely open, but there was an unmistakable quiver in her pupils. Her magnolia teeth bit her red lips. Marianne knew Heloise only did it when she was tensed. 

The glow on Heloise's raised brows gave away confusion and agitation. And then Heloise went dark. Marianne shook her head and concentrated again.

Marianne felt the warmth leave her face. The cold wind was harsh against her fingertips. But the long fingers entwined in hers momentarily, providing instant heat, but just as instantaneously left the trail cold. 

Marianne opened her eyes, puffing through her mouth, trying to get her spinning head into control. But it was hardly any use. So she closed her eyes once more to take her back to the rosy atmosphere. This time she knew what she saw. The one thing she'd only seen only once before on the golden-haired girl. Fear. 

Each time she replayed the incident, the more her thoughts became indisputable. Soon she passed out of exhaustion.

\---

Marianne didn't get out of bed the next day. Fever, she lied to her mother, and she believed the hazel-eyed girl. But only she knew the high temperature wasn't due to some stupid virus. Unless Heloise could be called a virus. She did affect her as one for sure. High temperature, sore body and nausea. Classic symptoms.

Her mother infused spices into her soup to help her with her illness. It was piping hot, but it didn't provide the warmth that Heloise did. But it gave her enough strength to function like a normal human being.

While she was sipping her soup, her phone vibrated. She picked up her phone to see it was a call from Sophie.

"Hey Soph" she said weakly.

"Check the group" Sophie squealed.

"But why?"

"Can you just do it?" she pleaded.

"Okay okay." Marianne gave in.

"Check now" said Sophie enthustiastically and cut the call.

Marianne unlocked her phone to check the notifications.

_tyrannous trio_

A: Do you guys want to go to the fair tomorrow?

A: My camping trip got cut short. 

S: I'M IN

S: Do you mind if Alex tags along?

A: I'm okay with it. I think Marianne will be too.

S: Okay let me ask him.

S: He'll there. Do you want to drink? Alex says he can get some.

A: You know I don't. And you shouldn't either. YOU'RE UNDERAGE FOR GOD'S SAKE SOPH!!

S: EXACTLY. There will never be a better time to break the rules :P 

S: And who cares anyway!!

S: What about you Marianne?? 

S: MARIANNE WHERE ARE YOU

S: I'm going to call her.

M: Hey guys. I feel sick. I don't think I can come

A: MARIANNE IS LOVESICK.

Marianne felt the heat rise up in her cheeks.

M: Can't you think of anything else Amelie -_-

S: BUT MARIANNE THERE'LL BE RIDES. AND FOOD. AND BOOZE. COME ONNNN!!!

S: PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE. IT'S NO FUN WITHOUT YOU.

Marianne chuckled. Sophie's energy was extremely contagious. Even a phone screen couldn't barricade it.

M: Okayyyy finnne. Can I ask Nicole?

S: YESSSS the more the merrier!!

S: Do you want me to ask Heloise??

S: I can text her

A: I'm fine with it.

S: Marianne?

Marianne took a huge gulp. She was sceptical about this.

M: okay. I'll text Nicole 

M: You ask Heloise.

S: On itttt

Marianne switched to the chat with Nicole. Surprisingly she was online. 

M: Nic you wanna go to the fair this evening with me, Amelie, Sophie and Alex?

N: Sure. Count me in.

M: Do you want anything to drink? Sophie said she can arrange some.

N: Really?? Ask her if she can get me some beer !

M: Cool beans. I'll let her know. 

Marianne switched the chat to tyrannous trio.

M: Nicole's said she'll come. When are we going?

S: Does 6pm sound okay?

M: Yeah sounds great. 

A: Sophie's 6pm is equivalent to 7pm. Let's meet at 5pm :")

S: Oh shut up Amelie. I'll be on time. 

M: By the way can you get beer for Nicole?

S: Sure thing!! What about you?

M: Nothing for me bud.

S: But whyyyy???

A: Because _Marianne only drinks wine._

A: She's basically an old woman

M: That's not true -_-

A: :P

S: Btw Heloise just texted back

_Sophie is typing..._

Marianne was shaking like a leaf. She half wished Heloise would decline the invitation.

S: She's is in!! Let's meet at my place? We'll take a cab to the fair from there.

Marianne felt her stomach churn.

M: See you in a couple of hours

A: Peace out guys 

S: COOOOOOOLLL IT'S GOING TO BE SO MUCH FUN.

Marianne switched to the chat with Nicole.

M: We are meeting outside Sophie's at 6. Do you know where she lives?

N: Yes. I'll be there. It sounds exciting!

M: yeah can't wait

\---

Marianne wore a red flannel unbuttoned over a black shirt and jeans with black sneakers. She checked her watch. 5:54. On-time.

"Mom I'm going out now. Don't make dinner for me." said Marianne.

"Did you brush your hair?" asked her mother sharply, sizing her up.

Marianne slinked her neck into her shoulder. "Yes" she said meekly. 

"No, you didn't. Your hair is standing up like Medusa" she gibed."Go brush it or else I'm not letting you go anywhere."

Marianne made an annoyed face but was laughing internally. She had to give credit to some of the taunts that her mother threw at her. She went to her room and combed her hair a couple of times, letting it fall on her shoulders. 

"Can I go now?" Marianne desperately asked.

"Yes you may. Be back before 9" her mother said sternly.

"I will" she said joyously and sauntered towards Sophie's place.

Nicole and Amelie were already waiting outside. Nicole was wearing a light blue shirt with a white unicorn with a rainbow over it. A white belt held her denim jeans, which was folded once to show the tongue of her white shoe vans.

"That shirt looks so cute on you" Marianne complimented and gave her a peck on the cheek.

"And you look as boyish as ever" Nicole grinned and rubbed her back."Oh hey, Heloise! I didn't know you'd be coming too." she said cheerfully.

"Hey" said a raspy voice from behind the black-haired girl.

Marianne shuddered on hearing her name. Or was it her voice, she couldn't tell. She slightly parted her lips, letting the steam escape from the pumping heart engine before turning about to acknowledge her.

Heloise wore a teal blue checkered shirt, folded up to her elbows, unbuttoned to reveal a white shirt underneath. Her hair was loose, the golden ringlets falling on her shoulders. Both her hands were in the pocket of her black jeans. She was intensely biting her lips, not making any eye contact with Marianne.

"Hello" a shriek came from behind Marianne.

Marianne felt a body pounce on her back. She quickly put her hands behind to piggyback the individual. She turned a full circle once and put the jolly-girl down. Sophie hugged Amelie and shook Heloise's hand before acknowledging Nicole.

"The cab is right there. Let's go." said Sophie jovially.

"What about Alex?" asked Amelie while they were walking towards it.

"He'll meet us there near the entrance. Get inside quickly" ushered Sophie.

Amelie sat shotgun while the others were squeezed in the back. Marianne sat by the window with Sophie on her lap since she was the smallest, with Heloise on her side, the distance minimal between them. 

At each turn, their thighs and shoulders brushed, and each time it did, Marianne jerked from the touch. The black-haired girl could feel the heavy breaths of Helosie from time to time. She would have easily mistaken it for hers except for the fact that she wasn't breathing at all.

Marianne finally caught her breath when the car stopped at the entrance and they all stepped out. As Sophie said, Alex was already waiting at the gate. He took them to a corner where Sophie, Nicole and Alex each finished a can of beer before they all headed towards the fair.

The fair was humungous and brightly lit in a variety of tones. There were innumerable colourful and flashy stalls with games and food, the good old rides like bumper cars and marvellous carousels, and the thrilling ones like the reputable pirate ship and the star attraction, the Giant Ferris wheel.

They decided to hit the stalls first before making their way to the rides. The first stall that they stumbled upon was the ring toss. Sophie's eyes caught the huge teddy put on display.

"Win that big teddy bear for me, Alex" Sophie begged.

"I'll try to" he promised. 

Alex bought a bucket of rings. A quarter of a bucket down, Sophie had joined Alex and they were throwing the rings as fast as they could cussing and giggling at the same time. The chorusing in the background only encouraged them with their antics.

They played the game twice, but the only thing that he could win was a keychain of the Eiffel Tower for her. But Sophie was the happiest and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Tough luck man" consoled Marianne him "We all know it's rigged."

"I can win it for you" Heloise offered, her teal eyes shining, making contact with Marianne for the first time that day. Marianne could have melted in those eyes.

"Can you now?" Marianne asked with a raised eyebrow.

Amelie nudged Marianne's shoulders and coughed softly. Marianne gave her a quick glare before turning back to Heloise.

Heloise gave her a smirk and whistled at the stall boy, placing the euros on the counter for one round. The boy got a bucket of rings and explained to her how to win the big prize. 

Heloise started throwing the rings one by one, carefully aiming at the bottles. But the bottle were polar opposites to rings, causing it to flit at the slightest touch. With each miss, Heloise got more and more frustrated and progressed to vigorously throwing the rings. Half-bucket down Heloise was cursing and flinging with both her hands. It didn't take long for Marianne to join in too and start flicking the rings.

"This is a sham" Heloise yelled.

"No it's not" the stall boy yelled back.

"Why isn't it getting hooked then?" Marianne argued.

"Because you sissies can't aim properly" he jabbed.

"Who are you calling a sissy!" Sophie threatened from the back, zipping the curly-haired boy's mouth shut.

Soon the bucket was empty and so were their hands.

"One more round" Heloise angrily to the stall boy, who had a smug smile on his face.

"We are going to check the other stalls" Amelie shouted into Marianne's ears. 

Her words got lost in the ruckus as the boy returned with the bucket. They didn't even wait for him to set it down as they frantically grabbed the rings and start throwing it on the bottles, their grunting and yowling increasing as the bucket emptied rapidly.

By the end of it, Heloise had won Marianne a plushy miniature tiger, or rather they'd won it together. Heloise was red in the face not only because of all the yelling that she had done but also because of the shame that she couldn't win the teddy bear for Marianne.

"Here you go" she said handing the toy to Marianne."I know it's not what I said I'd get you." she said dejectedly.

Marianne gave her a questioning look and shook her head. Her lips curved into a smile, letting out a muffled laugh. She took a step closer towards Heloise and put her arms around her shoulders, gently pulling her into a hug. 

"But it's exactly what I wanted," she whispered in her ears. Time came to a standstill. Between the crowd of people and between all the commotion, it was just her and Heloise. Marianne was aware of her smallest of movements. She could feel Heloise grin in her shoulders. The way her fingers hovered over her middle back as she gripped her. The springy curls which tickled her neck. The soft pumping of Heloise's heartbeat on her chest. Marianne felt a subtle mellowness spread throughout her body. She could have held her forever. 

Heloise pulled away from her and slipped her palm into Marianne's, squeezing it gently. Her blue eyes had the most attractive twinkle to them. They both giggled as Heloise towed Marianne through the swarm of people, their fingers intertwined tightly.


	16. Aim

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone for leaving nice comments on the previous chapters!! It really warms my heart :'))

Marianne and Heloise soon caught up with the others, who were now standing in the queue for the bumper cars.

Sophie and Alex shared a red car as did Marianne and Nicole. Amelie and Heloise paid extra for separate cars since both of them were looking forward to ramming into people. Amelie sat in a green car while Heloise chose in a blue one.

As luck would have it, Marianne was already surrounded by her rivals from all four sides. And they made no mistake in ambushing her as soon as the cars came alive. Loud cackle filled her ears.

"All of you are dead to me." she threatened them as all the cars reversed to attack her again. Marianne manoeuvred her way around the blockade by forcing herself in the space between Amelie's and Heloise's car.

She took a whole turn of the arena, keeping an eagle eye on the cars around her. Alex was already having a go at Amelie.

"Watch out" Nicole shouted but it was too late as a blue car hammered her against the wall.

"Seems like you came to get hit today" Heloise taunted her. 

Marianne bit her lower lip and quickly accelerated her car and took a U-turn. Heloise was reversing her own car. Marianne slammed her car into Heloise's. Heloise would have been thrown out of the car if she was not for her seatbelt. 

"Do you want to team up?" Heloise enquired Marianne.

"Are you too scared to go against me?" she jibed at her.

Heloise scoffed. "No I'm not." she defended herself "It'll be fun to knock into the others. They won't know what hit them." she said with a wicked smile on her face. 

Before Marianne could consider the offer, a red car rammed into hers. She let out loud curses as Sophie's squeals of laughter passed by her.

"I'm with you" Marianne conceded."We are going after Sophie first"

"Whatever you say, ma'am" Heloise said laughingly.

Marianne gave her a smug grin before reversing her car to chase the others. Heloise was right behind her. She collided into the red car, throwing its occupants in the air. A blue car hit the green one right next to it. The air was filled with curses and laughter. The rest of the car ride was spent Heloise and Marianne ganging up against the others and bullying them.

They all exited the arena with happy faces. They spent most of their time together, parting ways when a colourful stall caught their eye or a stall with a game that they couldn't resist, joining the rest during thrilling rides. 

\---

The sun was setting and everyone was famished after a long evening. They decided to treat themselves to hotdogs and fries.

"It's almost time for sunset. It'll look so beautiful from the top of ferris wheel" Sophie proposed.

They all agreed with her and made their way towards the queue for the ride.

"Wait" Marianne shouted suddenly, causing everyone to turn around. She was standing in front of a shooting game with a red backdrop.

"I love this game." she exclaimed."Let me shoot a few before we go" she pleaded with the rest.

"The queue will fill up soon" said Nicole. 

"You all can go stand in the queue" Heloise suggested. "I'll stay here with Marianne. We'll join you later."

"That sounds fine" Nicole approved, as the rest did. Heloise watched them leave, while in the meantime Marianne took out some coins in her pocket and gave it to a man with a huge moustache. In exchange for the coins, he gave her a gun loaded with fake bullets.

"Do you know it well?" Heloise asked.

"I know a bit" Marianne said truthfully.

Marianne carefully placed the gun on her body. Bending her head slightly, she focused on her rear sight, adjusting it to the same plane as the front sight. She took a deep breath and pulled the trigger. 

_pat pat pat pat pat_ out of the five shots, four of them had found their mark.

"What the hell" Heloise exclaimed."Is that what you meant by a bit?"

"I got lucky" she chuckled.

"I'd like to try" Heloise said suddenly with conviction.

"Do you know how to shoot?" Marianne enquired.

"I don't know if can shoot" said Heloise.

"This can be a little dangerous if you're not careful. It could potentially dislocate your shoulder." Marianne warned.

"Then show me how not to" Heloise told her.

Marianne gave her a slight nod. She placed a few more coins on the counter, in return, the man gave her a rifle loaded with bullets. 

She slid her fingers on the smooth wooden barrel, wrapping her right palm over the stock, carefully placing her index finger on the trigger guard. She looked up to see the curious blue eyes staring at her.

Marianne stepped forward, her face now close to Heloise's. "Turn around" she whispered. Heloise promptly obeyed her. 

She hoisted the rifle over Heloise's head, lowering it to the front of her chest. Her bosom grazed against Heloise's back as took a minuscule step forward. 

"Place your hands on the front of the gun, where mine is" she directed. Heloise's palm skimmed over Marianne's knuckles, before clasping her fingers around the slender ones. Marianne divested herself off Heloise's soft skin before gently placing it back on Heloise's dorsal side.

Marianne's mouth moved closer to Heloise's ear. "The gun and your body should be one," she whispered, positioning the rifle in the gap below the joint where Heloise's arms and shoulders met. "So that you don't hurt yourself when it recoils" she explained.

She felt tremors on the spot below Heloise's earlobe, the aftermath of the oscillation from her vocal cords.

Marianne placed her free hand on Heloise's elbow and guided it towards the back of the gun. "Wrap your fingers tightly around the stock" she instructed. The blonde-haired girl's muscles tightened as she gripped it firmly.

Marianne ran her fingers through her forearm, setting her hand's on Heloise's knuckles, with her index finger making its way towards Heloise's longest finger. "Place your index finger on the trigger" she whispered.

Heloise turned her head slightly, catching Marianne's gaze. Brows raised, lips hidden by her teeth, her sweet breath on the green-eyed girl's face. Marianne's smile broadened into a half-moon, she knew her expressions all too well.

She placed her chin in the hollow of Helosie's shoulders. "Do you see the two pointy ends?" she asked her. Heloise blinked twice, rapidly, turning her focus back to the gun, ensuring her concentration was on the mellow voice.

"The one closer to me..." Marianne whispered."...align it to the one closest to you..."

"...and aim at your target." she breathed.

Heloise intoxicating eyes darted to Marianne's face, instantly causing her knees to quiver. She put her hands on Heloise's waist, causing her body to stiffen to the touch.

"Take a deep breath, pull the trigger" she respired.

Marianne felt her waist expand, pausing momentarily before the shot went off. Heloise had found her mark. 

Heloise turned her head, eyes gleaming and a wide grin plastered on her face. "Do you think I hit my target?" she asked with a hint of cheek in her voice.

Her fingers trembled near the hem of Heloise's shirt, as a shiver went down her spine. Her lips were parted, now dangerously close to the luscious pink ones. The walls of her chest were pounding to the rapid beats of her heart

"I believe so" Marianne breathed.

Heloise's grin changed into a smirk, her face flushed in a deep colour of red. She turned her focus back to the gun, firing the remaining shots successionally, with each one finding its mark.

Marainne stood agape as Heloise placed the gun back on the counter and turned towards her.

"I didn't know you were an expert marksman" Marianne remarked with a chuckle.

"I didn't know you were an excellent teacher" Heloise said with a smile.

"Shall we join the others?" Marianne asked offering her hand with elbows bent.

"Yes please. I don't want to miss the sunset." Heloise said, delicately putting her hand under her arm and curling the hand back over it.

Marianne put her palms on Heloise's arm and they sauntered towards the giant Ferris Wheel.


	17. Flash

The pressure on Marianne's arm slackened. "There they are," Heloise chirped. 

Marianne and Heloise stopped in front of the group of four who were standing on the other side of the railing. "Did you buy the tickets?" Marianne asked. 

Nicole chuckled, flashing six white slips. Marianne put her hand on the railing and jumped, landing next to Amelie. Heloise followed her suit but tripped on Marianne's legs. Marianne grabbed hold of her arm before she face-planted herself. 

"Can you please be careful?" she seethed. All she got was a grin from Heloise. Marianne hopelessly shook her head. 

"Look how big it is," Marianne remarked as they both cranked her head up to look atop the Ferris wheel.

The Ferris wheel was enormous. It's spokes were white, lit up in alternative colours of neon blue and blazing red while gondolas were illuminated in bright colours of red, blue, green and purple, background by an apricot sky and fluffy white clouds.

"Whew" a gasp escaped Marianne's mouth. Unconsciously, she started counting the number of cars attached to the spokes of the wheel.

Marianne suddenly heard a sharp irritated voice, cutting off her tallying. "Get inside, Marianne,"

Marianne blinked a couple of times, realising that she was the only one left to enter the capsule. She bit her lips in annoyance and stepped into the gondola. She walked to the window opposite to her, taking a spot adjacent to Heloise.

Heloise leaned into Marianne's ears. "How many did you count?"

Marianne raised her eyebrows in surprise. "How did you know I was counting?"

"You do that thing with your eyebrows," Heloise chuckled. "I counted thirty-six, in case you were wondering."

Marianne smiled. "I counted less. The wheel being in constant rotation doesn't help." Heloise nodded in agreement. 

Marianne placed both her hands on the glass pane and put her face on it to get a clearer view. The ground below them was bubbling with people. Stalls in vibrant colours were popping in clustered the area. She could hear the blathering from the crowd through the small opening in the glass.

As their car went higher, Paris unravelled itself. Rows and columns of lush green conifers were cut straight through the middle by a boulevard studded with orange leaved trees. It was bustling with cars and buses. People of all kinds, young and old, were walking on the streets. Beyond the boulevard were Chateaus, marbled in appearance with an orange tinge to them.

The first ascent to the top was slow since the wheel paused in short bursts to accommodate the passengers in each car. The sky had turned from apricot to orange right in front of her eyes. Thin white peach-hued clouds were floating above the horizon. The cold wind rustled through the slit in the pane. 

Marianne suddenly felt a tug at her shirt. Heloise was pinching the hem between her fingers. Marianne looked at her, baffled. 

Heloise was biting down on her lip, her eyes widened. The skin from her neck to her face was tomato-red. Marianne was concerned.

"What is it?" 

Heloise gulped. "We're too high."

"Do you have vertigo?"

Heloise nodded her head. "A little. I have never been this high before."

Marianne glanced around the car, trying to find a solution to Heloise's uneasiness. "Do you want to sit down?"

Heloise nodded her head and took a few steps towards the seat. She sat down, placing her elbows on her knees and crossed her fingers. Her eyes focused at a fixed point near where Marianne was standing. Heloise's legs were shaking vigorously. Marianne knew she was terrified. 

Her legs brushed against Heloise's as she sat down next to her. Heloise was shivering. She slipped her hands between Heloise's, rubbing the backside soothingly with her fingers. They were burning hot and almost sweaty. The pulse in her dorsal side was as hard as the water hitting the rocks on the banks of a river. 

"Here look at me," she whispered.

Heloise's fearful blue eyes locked in with the hazel ones. "Do you want to try focusing on distant objects? Maybe it'll help," Marianne suggested.

Heloise nodded her head so Marianne helped her up and they both walked towards the glass pane. 

Heloise placed her hand on the railing, rounded her back and let out a deep breath. She narrowed her eyes, concentrating at the far end of Paris, where the houses and horizon merged into one. The lower half of the ball of orange had already started to disappear. A flock of birds flew through the Sun before vanishing from their view. 

Marianne felt the temperature in Heloise's hand drop to normal levels. The rapid beats of her pulse had reduced to soft throbs.

"Beautiful, don't you think?" she remarked suddenly.

Marianne felt a grin spread across on her face. "I think it's stupendous." her hazel eyes glimpsed at Heloise's face."I could watch it a million times and still be in awe of it."

The corner of Heloise's lips curved, her blue eyes catching her gaze. "Me too," she said, with sincerity. A soft laugh escaped her lips.

"How do you feel now?"

"Much better, thank you" said Heloise, gently squeezing her hands.

"Why didn't you say that heights don't suit you beforehand?" Marianne asked softly.

"Because I wanted to watch the sunset, _with you_."

Marianne's heart plunged, synchronising to the descent of the Ferris Wheel. Heloise wanted to watch the sunset. _With her._ Even though she wasn't comfortable with heights.

Marianne's breath became slower as well as denser. "You dummy." she teased her fondly, shaking her head. "I don't know if I want to punch you or hug you."

"I would take a punch if you would hug me," Heloise said cheekily.

Marianne grinned widely and put her arms around her shoulder and Heloise wrapped her arms around her waist, as they both embraced each other. Marianne closed her eyes, letting the warmth from her seep deep inside her. Wrapped in Heloise's arms made her feel like a caterpillar, swaddled up snugly in its protected cushiony cocoon.

She gently rubbed Heloise's back before breaking the hug, sliding her palms into Heloise's and clasping it with her fingers. Soft fingers traced Marianne's forearm before clinging to her upper arm. Heloise gently replaced the lost touch by sliding the fingers from her other hand into Marianne's.

Heloise tilted her head, her soft springy curls tickling the pulse in Marianne's neck, as she rested her head on her shoulders. Marianne suddenly felt extremely hot, considering how cold the compartment actually was. 

"The height doesn't scare me anymore." she murmured.

The pair of green eyes roved to the half-squished cherubic face. An angelic voice whispered, "I feel safe when you're around me." 

The fiery blue eyes caught her gaze and were staring at her fervently. Her green eyes drifted to the shapely pink ridges below her philtrum, a dulcet breath escaping her parted lips. Marianne felt a heated desire brim on her lips.

Marianne twisted her erratic curls between her fingers, tucking it gently behind her ear. She leaned forwards and closed her eyes, her lips placing a tender kiss on the crease where her bushy eyebrows met. Marianne opened her eyes to an inane smile, smiling just for her. 

They simpered at each other, turning their faces to stare diligently at the red rays of setting sun. A greenish-blue light flashed on the horizon, as the tip of the blood-red sun disappeared on the skyline. It is said, that once you’ve seen a green flash, you’ll never go wrong in matters of the heart.

\---

Marianne's eyes dawdled around the car. Alex had his arms around Sophie's shoulder while she had wrapped both her arms around his waist. They were both talking in hushed tones, chuckling from time to time. Nicole was standing next to Amelie and sipping a can of beer, as they both soaked in the view. 

Nicole suddenly stumbled but kept her balance by holding onto her railing. Pattered steps echoed in the car as Marianne rushed to her side. "Are you okay?" she asked concernedly.

Nicole shook her head. "I feel groggy"

Marianne grabbed the can from her hands and handed to Amelie. "Is it because of motion sickness?"

"Maybe. I want this ride to end soon," she said weakly, her hands on the railing and her back curved like a bridge.

Marianne upturned her lips sympathetically, putting her hands around her waist to support her. "I think it's almost done. Hang in there."

A tall figure stood next to Marianne. "Is she okay?" Heloise asked. Sophie and Alex were also standing beside her now.

"No. She's feeling dizzy."

Sophie kneeled, levelling her eyes with Nicole. "Do you want some water?"

"That'd be nice."

Alex quickly grabbed his bag and took out his water bottle.

"There's no water" he shook the empty bottle in the air.

At that exact moment, their gondola came to a halt. Marianne helped Nicole up and propped her on Amelie's shoulders. She took hold of Nicole's other hand and put it around her own shoulders. The automatic doors slid open as they stepped out one after the other with Sophie clearing the way.

"Can we go to the restroom?" Nicole asked.

"Yeah sure," said Marianne. "Heloise, can you do me a favour?"

"Yes tell me."

"Can you buy a bottle of water and meet us in the restroom?"

"Yes I'm on it." Marianne watched her as she disappeared into the crowd.

"I'll try to get her a plastic bag, just in case," Sophie suggested. 

"Yes please," and she vanished too.

Marianne and Amelie dragged her to the nearest restroom. Thankfully no one else was there. Marianne opened the tap in the basin. Nicole put her hands together to make a cup and placed it under the running water. She splashed cold water on her face as Marianne held her hair back. 

"I think she'll need some napkins. I'll get her some." Amelie said. Marianne nodded her head and she dashed out of the door.

Nicole wiped the dripping water off her face with her fingers. She took a step forward but stumbled again, though this time Marianne caught her in her arms. She hauled her up and wiped the water droplets on her face using the sleeves of her shirt. 

"Marianne you're the sweetest," she said lovingly.

Marianne grinned. "How drunk are you?" 

A dark shadow appeared by the door, which went unnoticed by them. Nicole put her hands around Marianne's neck. "A looottt. You do know I love you right?"

Nicole leaned in straight and placed a kiss just beside the corner of her lips. For anyone else, they would have seen it as it is, a harmless portrayal of affection between friends, but from the angle where Heloise was standing, it could easily be mistaken for something else altogether,

"Yes, I know. I love you too."


	18. Resistance

_Crrrrkkkk...A_ resounding crush of the plastic bottle reverberated in Marianne's eardrums, causing her to jolt in surprise. Tiny hairs were sticking up on her forearm. Startled, she turned her face to the direction of obtrusion, sighing in relief when she saw who it was. 

"It took you long enough" Marianne jested cheerfully. "Nicole and I were about to produce our own water." 

Heloise stood unstirred like a statue that had been standing for decades. All the colour had drained from her flesh, leaving her skin paperwhite. Her brows were arched, exposing the white skin above her eyelids.

Marianne held out her hand motioning her to pass the bottle to her.

Heloise's eyes flickered as she walked up to her, each step thundering more than the previous and held out the bottle. Marianne's breath went frigid when looked into her static oceanic eyes; without waves, lifeless. They were crystal blue, like a frozen lake far up north in the peak of winter. Marianne's fingers grazed over the freezing fingers as she took the bottle from her. 

"I hope it was long enough for you." A chill went up to her spine at the cold undertone. A suffocating feeling gripped her chest. Marianne gulped, unsure of what she was feeling.

A hand grasped Marianne's shoulder causing her to jump on her toes. "Can we please leave? This place stinks of piss."

"Yeah," she replied. Nicole grabbed her neck and Marianne put her hand around her waist. 

Heloise flinched and bit down hard on her lower lip. She stepped back to the door and held it open for them. Marianne looked to thank her, but Heloise was staring at the far end of the restroom, where she and Nicole had been standing just a while ago.

"Thank you," she said anyway but got no acknowledgement in return. The door behind her closed louder than it should have. _Probably a gust of wind_ , Marianne thought.

\---

Marianne, Nicole and Heloise were sitting in the backseat of the cab. The group made a collective decision to return to their homes since it was already late and also since Nicole wasn't feeling well at all. Marianne decided to drop Nicole home as wanted to make sure that she reached safely. Alex, Sophie and Amelie took a separate cab as they all lived in the same neighbourhood. Heloise was adamant at first about joining Marianne and Nicole but agreed after much persuasion from Marianne since she had to take a subway back which happened to be situated right opposite to Nicole's house. 

Marianne had an arm around Nicole who was fast asleep on her shoulders. Heloise had been staring out of the window the entire time, exhaling heavily from time to time. 

Marianne had no idea what was troubling her. She placed her fingers gently on Heloise's, hoping it would evoke a response from her. Heloise fisted her palms and moved her hands away from Marianne's. The usual warmness from Heloise was replaced with a biting coldness. 

Marianne breath stifled, sucking her into a deep void. She opened her mouth slightly, letting out a short perturbed gasp. 

The car stopped in front of a house which Marianne recognised immediately.

"Wake up," she stroked Nicole's cheek. "We're here."

Nicole was barely up, rubbing her eyes as they got out of the car. Marianne closed the door behind her. Nicole wrapped her arms around Marianne's neck as she wrapped it around her middle back. "I'll see you tomorrow," Marianne said as she broke the hug and gave her a small peck on the cheek.

"Thanks for taking care of me," she smiled.

"Always," she whispered giving her a light squeeze. She watched her as she walked up to the door and waved at them from the front porch.Marianne waved back at her. 

She now turned to Heloise, who was staring at the ground, nervously chewing her lips. "I'll walk you to the subway," Marianne offered.

"There's no need. I can go on my own."

"It's quite dark. I'd like to make sure that you reach safely."

"Well, what about you then?"

"I've lived here all my life," she looked at her with big eyes."I'll be fine."

Heloise didn't give her a reply so she assumed that it was a yes. They both started walking down the slope, with hands in their jeans pockets. An awkward silence lingered in the air, with none of them speaking a word to each other until they reached the station.

"Wait here. I'll get the tickets," Heloise said.

Marianne seriously contemplated her next move but made a choice to be a little braver than she usually was. The mere thought of it made her heartbeat escalate. She meekly slid her palms into Heloise's cold ones. "I'm coming with you," she said. And this time Heloise didn't resist.

Heloise let go of her hand when they reached the vending machine. She pushed some buttons and took out her blue wallet to take out coins to insert into the slot, putting the wallet back in her pocket when the machine gave out the tickets.

Marianne suddenly felt a familiar warmth in her palms. The long fingers entwined into hers, her thumb finding a comfortable spot in the hollow of her knuckles.

"Let's go," she said looking at the striking green ones.

They walked together to the gate holding each other's hands. Heloise still didn't let it go even as she leaned at the gate. Marianne felt tingling sensations on her dorsal side as Heloise vacillated between it with her thumb. 

They were both staring at each other intensely. Marianne could feel her heart throbbing on her chest, surging the rush in her veins. Heloise had a certain calmness in her eyes, contrasting from the ones Marianne was so used to. She felt extremely weak in her knees and her body was steadily shutting down.

Heloise slid her other hand into hers, pulling her closer causing her organs to jolt back to life. She could feel hot breath warming her face. Marianne involuntarily stroked Heloise's the backside of her palms with her fingers like it was the _most normal thing_ to do. 

Heloise's eyes drifted to Marianne's lips, gazing at it ardently. Marianne bit her lip, aware of the colour rising to her cheeks. Anxious of the sudden fiery gaze on her, she closed her eyes. Marianne could feel Heloise's breath graze her lips as she leaned forwards. 

And then it went cold altogether. Marianne felt the warmth leave her face and her hands. Loud steps echoed in her ears, the sound of which faded away with each passing second. She turned about, only to see a dark figure walk through the gates disappear and around the corner. 

Heloise was gone yet again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys. Firstly I'd apologise for the delayed updates. I've had so much workload in the past few weeks that I've barely gotten time and energy to actually sit down to write. I'll try to be as consistent as possible in the future.
> 
> Secondly, I'm sorry for not replying to many of the comments, which I really really appreciate. I'm kind of shy on the Net even though I'm the exact opposite irl lol idek why. 
> 
> Lastly, I'd like to thank every one of you for reading my work. It's something that I never expected (I'm being very very honest)
> 
> Hope everyone is well and safe <3 See you in the next Chapter.


	19. Faith

Fear gripped her throat. Her vocal cords vibrated like the strings of a guitar as screamed out her name. Marianne pushed the gate in a desperate attempt to get to the other side. It refused to give way whatsoever.

"Miss, you need to scan your ticket," a harsh voice told her. She smacked her forehead uttering a loud curse causing multiple heads to turn in her direction. 

She scampered to the vending machine and inserted the coins into the slot as fast as she could. She had absolutely no time to lose. 

After what seemed like an eternity the vending machine finally gave out the tickets. Marianne grabbed it and sprinted back to the gate, her wobbly knees struggling to find the ground beneath her. She scanned the ticket and pushed the rungs with all her might to let her on the other side. 

She flew like the wind, her legs carrying her faster than ever. Down the escalator she ran, shoving people in her way inviting blatant curses from them. Marianne really couldn't care less about them at this point. 

She stopped abruptly on the platform facing the train which already had it's doors open. She anxiously scoured the area for any signs Heloise, her heart thumping harder on the walls of her chest with each passing second. Her breath stopped when she noticed a bobbing head with golden curls and a blue shirt pass through one of the doors far away from her.

Marianne gasped and dashed towards the door nearest to her, but all she could manage was to leave an imprint of her hand on the glass pane. She grunted in despair and sprinted on the platform, racing with the train, her arms all over the place. Heavy mucous choked her throat and she struggled to breathe. Her legs were hurting. Her heart was hurting.

Her run was limited till the end of the platform, but the train continued on its journey, disappearing into the dingy tunnel. She blankly gaped at the darkness, which slowly sucked her into an inescapable void.

\---

The next thing she knew she was walking on the street, with her hands crossed around her arms. Tears glistened below her eyelid as the yellow hues of the streetlight fell on her face. She pulled her collar up, shivering as the nails on her finger scraped her neck. The night was cold. But not as biting as Heloise's demeanour. 

She fought back the hot salty water that fell down her cheeks by wiping it away with her wrists. She quickened her pace, making sure of staying in the shadows where no one could see her, immensely afraid of breaking down if anyone so much as glanced at her.

Unbeknownst to her, she reached the front door of her house. A sweet woman of seven and forty opened the door, welcoming her with a homely smile.

"How was your day, dear?"

"Great," she mumbled, arms still crossed, her head down. She didn't want her mother to see that she had cried, that she was crying, that she was going to cry even more.

She said no more and walked straight to her room and latched the door. A soft pillow cushioned her fall as she flung herself on the bed face down. She buried in her face in it and bawled like it was the end of the world. She sobbed and sobbed until her face was completely numb and she'd lost all sensations in her body. _Why did she feel so empty? Why were a thousand knots wringing the walls of her stomach?_

She took a breath, as deep as she could but all she inhaled was cold suffocating air. She hugged her pillow trying to find comfort in it till her pain ebbed, the covers dripping wet by the time she went to sleep.

\---

Marianne opened the doors to the court. She didn't even bother to check her watch since she knew that she was extremely late. Late enough that the team had already started their warm-up drills. She'd woken up that morning to a mad headache and a sore body. It was a miracle that she had even made it to practice.

A burly man stood at the corner of the court with his hands on his hips. The Coach looked extremely unhappy. Marianne profusely apologised to him but it didn't save her from a lecture on punctuality and discipline. 

"Warm-up before you start playing," he said finally.

"Yes sir" Marianne's ears were hurting from his constant blabber. She couldn't have been any more thankful that it had ended.

She made her way to an empty spot to warm her body up, passing Sophie on her way. "Good morning Marianne! Do you want to practice with us after warming up?" she asked with her evergreen smile. 

Marianne trembled like a leaf on a windy day when she glanced at the girl who was practising with her. Heloise had her eyes on the ground and was nervously shifting her weight on her toes. 

"Sure," she replied, dubious about the idea. 

"We shall be waiting for you. Be quick." she chirped. Marianne smiled weakly in response, glancing at Heloise one last time before taking her spot. 

Marianne had chosen a spot where she could warm up without any ball hitting her by mistake. But unfortunately for her, it gave her a direct view of the golden-haired girl or she was in fact, in the direct sight of Heloise. 

Marianne felt Heloise's gaze on her as she stretched, making her extremely conscious of her body movements. She abnormally jerked the joints of her body, surprised at the discovery of some that she didn't know even existed. She fluttered her hands in an attempt to get rid of the jitter, which turned out to be fruitless. In the end, she decided to leave it midway and joined them for practice.

"That was fast," Sophie said.

"I can't wait to play," she lied, knowing she would have lost her mind if Heloise kept staring at her with her mysterious blue eyes.

Marianne felt nervous as walked up to Heloise not knowing what to expect from her. "Hey," Marianne greeted her trying to be as normal as she could. Heloise stayed mum and instead slightly nodded her head, passing the ball to Sophie as she did so. Helosie had put up a cold fortress around her.

An invisible rope choked her throat as a morbid terror struck her body delivering a gutting punch to her stomach. Marianne felt the whole world crumble around her. She went back to Sophie's side, hoping for a respite, a comfortable ground. 

"Watch out!" The ball smacked her head diverting her attention from her thoughts. 

"Oww" she rubbed her head with her fingers.

"Sorry" Sophie apologised as she picked up the ball and passed it to the girl standing opposite to her.

Even from a distance Marianne felt the cold blue eyes piercing her. She tried to knock it off by focusing on underarm passes but she tremendously struggled to get any of them to perfectly land in Helosie's hands. Her hands shivered every single time the ball struck.

Heloise soon started smashing, like she always did. But it wasn't the same as before, her smashes lacking its usual intensity and ferociousness. And even then Marianne could barely return any of them. 

It was turning out to be a terrible practice session for her. She time and again fumbled with the ball unable to concentrate. Her body ceased to function.

"I'm going to get some water to drink. I'll be back." Sophie said.

Marianne acknowledged her with a nod and turned to Heloise, who supplied her with the ball. Marianne set it for her. Heloise smashed it weakly just like she had all throughout her practice session which she again failed to return, watching it as the ball flew away from her. Heloise ran to the ball and caught it after a bounce.

She walked towards Marianne and stood in front of her. "Are you not going to smash?" she asked her voice calm like the breeze over the sea.

The normalcy in her voice caught Marianne off guard. She squinted her eyes at Heloise. The muscles on the brows tightened. _After all that she had undergone, all that she was going through, it had come to this._

She shook her head and stormed to the locker room without uttering a single word. Marianne opened the door with force causing a resounding crash to echo on the walls. She walked over to the basin and hunched to open the tap, letting the sound of running water fill the room. The blood in her brain was as hot as the engine of a train. She cupped the cool water in her hands before splashing it on her face. 

Her ears tuned to the clap of footsteps approaching which eventually stopped when the broad figure stood erect beside her. She turned her face to see the red-faced girl with blonde curls falling over her forehead.

"Maria-" She walked out of the locker before the shaky voice could finish her name. She wanted absolutely nothing to do with Heloise. 

She fisted her palm in anger and clenched her teeth, stomped her way to the court, crossing Sophie who was waiting for her. 

"Where are you going?" Sophie asked.

Marianne's eyes focused on a pair of girls who were practising the farthest from where she was standing.

"I'm going to play with Sylvie and Therese." she walked away without any further explanation leaving behind a confused Sophie who scratched her head at Marianne's erratic behaviour.

Therese waved at Marianne as she saw her approaching them. "Can I join you?" she asked Therese.

"Only if you smash" she put forth her condition with a wide grin on her face. 

Marianne shook her head. "No I-"

"Please please please," she begged, "We hardly get to play with you." 

Marianne's gave in to her request, "Throw the ball." 

Sylvie tossed the ball to Marianne while Therese jogged to the opposite side to join Sylvie. 

Marianne caught the ball in her hands and glanced at Sophie. Heloise was standing next to her, both her hands on her hips and was staring at her. Heloise's eyes were completely red, on the verge of tears. Marianne narrowed her eyes at her aware of the blood simmering in her veins. 

She passed the ball to Sylvie who lifted it high in the air. A huge flush of anger overcame her. She took a step back and jumped, smashing it as hard as an axe chopping the bark of a tree. The ball flew over Therese's head and hit the seat behind her, the sound of which caught everyone's attention. 

Her eyes followed the ball which had stopped by Heloise's ankles. Heloise rounded her back to pick up the ball. "Leave it," Marianne's voice boomed across the court. All eyes were now on her.

Heloise stared at her as she walked towards her and picked the ball up. She glared and turned her back to her, leaving the white-faced panic-stricken girl frozen still in her place.

\---

Marianne's eyes were on the brown tiled floor as she vigorously dried her hair with a towel. 

"Can I talk to you?" said a husky voice.

Marianne didn't even have to look up to know who the voice belonged to. She took a step away from her, turning her back to her as she did so. A hand firmly grabbed her wrist "Please."

Her body stiffened as she turned her to Heloise. "What do you want to say?"

"Can you wait till everyone leaves?" 

Marianne furrowed her brows. _What could Heloise possibly want to say that they had to wait until everyone had left?_ She was almost going to snap at Heloise but held her tongue on seeing the flicker of fear in the blue eyes. Instead, she resorted to a nod and flung the towel on her shoulders. She walked as far away from her as possible and took a spot next to Sophie.

Marianne checked her watch. 9:41."It's time" she told Sophie. 

"Do you want me to announce?"

"Yeah."

Sophie cleared her throat. "Time to start moving everyone" she yelled at the top of her lungs, her voice carrying to the corners of the room. She checked her own watch. "It's 9:42 already!"

One by one they scuttled out of the room, emptying it within seconds. The seniors were now the only ones left in the room. 

Marianne stood with her arms crossed, her eyes sizing up the rigid bodied girl the entire time. Heloise chewed on her lip, not making any eye contact with her whatsoever. 

"Sophie and I are leaving," said Amelie. Marianne acknowledged her with a slight nod, not taking her eyes off Heloise.

The door closed with a thud and Marianne knew they were gone. The blue-eyed girl and she were the only occupants of the room. An old tube light flickered above Heloise, almost making her look inanimate. Marianne pursed her lips, annoyed at the girl standing in her line of sight.

Marianne grabbed the towel on her shoulders and threw it on the bag beside her. "What is it?" The colour rose from Heloise's neck to her face. The mist in her blue eyes, condensed into water droplets.

Heloise stepped towards her each step as lighter than a feather, barely making noise. Her shoulders brushed against Marianne's as she leaned her head, placing it in the duvet of her shoulders. 

"I'm scared." the black-haired girl felt hot tears sliding down her shoulders. Marianne's anger instantly dissipated into thin air. She put her arms around Heloise's broad shoulders even though she was incredibly confused.

"Your raging fire consumes me, Marianne. Without invitation, without notice. I feel the most alive when I'm around you. And at the same time, it hurts, just like nails being hammered constantly on a hard piece of wood."

"I don't think I understand," she said softly, giving Heloise the space to continue to speak aloud her mind.

Heloise's vocal cords oscillated above the gap of her shoulder joint as she gulped. "I know you're with Nicole."

"Hold on a second" She stared into Heloise's blue eyes, half of which was covered by the curls falling on her forehead. "You think Nicole and I are...dating??"

"You're not?" Heloise raised her head, her eyeballs cherry coloured, dripping with tears.

Marianne raised her brows. "No?!" her eyes widened as studied Heloise's face trying to find signs that would provide an explanation to why she would think so. " _What could possibly make her reach that conclusion?" she wondered,_ racking her brains furiously in an attempt to figure out Helosie's thought process. 

At the same time, she gently cradled Heloise's face with one of her hands providing comfort to her burning cheeks. She gazed at her earnestly, trying to piece Heloise together. Heloise nestled in her palm and gazed at her with those intense blue eyes of hers.

Marianne shook her head, her lips curving into a smile. She decided to clarify her relationship with Nicole for once and for all. "I've known Nicole ever since we could speak our first words and she's been my best friend since then. Now she is almost like a sister to me" a slight smile spread across her face as she traced the soft fair cheeks with her thumb."Is that why you ran? Because you thought I'm with Nicole?" 

Heloise gave her a slight nod, almost ashamed of herself. 

Marianne continued "Is that the same reason why you ran the day before?" 

"No. I was too afraid that my feelings won't be reciprocated." Heloise's lips grazed on Marianne's palms. A rosy blush painted itself on her cheeks. "I really like you, Marianne." 

Marianne ran her hands on Heloise's upper arms, placing her fingers on the side of her neck. Heloise's pulse was beating rapidly.

"Show me how much you do."

Heloise inched closer to her, her nose almost touching Marianne's, warm sweet breath on her face.

"Am I allowed to kiss you?" her whisper grazed her the lips.

"Yes you are." Marianne closed her eyes.

Heloise's soft lips touched Marianne's, spreading tingling sensations, wrecking her nervous system. A cold wind brushed against Marainne's lips, as the plump pink ones left hers.

Marianne opened her eyes grasped Heloise by her shoulders. Tears welled in her eyes. She was not going to let her leave again this time. At least not without leaving things unsaid, "Don't run. Stay." she pleaded.

Helosie's pupils quivered as she stared into the frightened hazel ones "What if I don't do it right?" she confessed in a small whisper.

Marianne ran her fingers through silky wet curls. "Take a leap of faith." 

Sparkling azure eyes stared ardently at her. Heloise splayed her palm on her chest. Marianne's felt her heartbeat against the soft tips of the long fingers. Heloise traced a line her up her oesophagus to her lips, the flares scorching Marianne's curve below her chin. She mapped Marianne's lower epidermis with her index and middle finger, sending rays of fiery sensations all over her face which spread like wildfire throughout her body. "Do all lovers feel like they're inventing something?" Heloise breathed on her chin. 

"You dreamt about me?"

"No." her luscious lips traced the corner of her mouth, "I thought about you."

Heloise traced lagoon of passion on her jawline with the tip of her index finger. A whirlpool of emotions lingered on the top of Marianne's nose, her warm breath fanning over her mouth. The mellow aroma of lavender conditioner filled her lungs. Her lower epidermis to worked up to a frenzy, letting out a gasp as a pair of parted lips meandered on hers. A moist lip, soft as a marshmallow, dissipated the quiver, sucking it tenderly like the smoothness of honey dripping from the edge of a spoon. Fragrant nectar fissioned on the buds of her tongue, setting Marianne aflame like a forest on fire. 

She cupped Heloise's face and pulled her closer to taste all of her, sucking her lips tenderly and passionately as she could. Heloise gently tugged her lips with her teeth, pulling her like a tsunami capable of eradicating her entire existence. Marianne pulled back, almost sure she'd have evaporated into thin air if she hadn't. 

Heloise heaved deep short breaths on her lips as she herself did on the full pink ones.

"You taste nice" she muttered. "Apples is it?" 

"Mhmm," Marianne placed an affectionate kiss on her soft cheek. "We're late for class." 

"Do we have to go?" Heloise grumbled as her fingers traced the back of her neck.

"I don't want to. But the janitor will be here soon to clean up," she explained widening her eyes at the bright blue ones.

"Then we'll leave when she comes" Heloise pulled her closer, her nose brushing against hers. Marianne couldn't say no to the pair irresistible lips.


	20. Marked

Marianne gasped as her teeth bit her lips, a sudden realization that Heloise's soft supple lips were still on hers. She stroked Heloise's face with her thumb, stupefied with the knowledge her soft cheeks were still in her hands. She dropped her hands to Heloise's shoulder for support, afraid her weak knees would give away to the shaky floor beneath her. 

Heloise's bosom arched hers as her fervent kisses became deeper. Marianne was almost out of breath and she knew Heloise was too, judging by the heavy hot breaths on her face. Unable to get air into her lungs anymore, she pulled away, trying to inhale as much air as she could. 

Marianne gazed at the blurry full lips which had now turned dark red and were matching the colour of her cheeks. She traced Heloise's jawline with her fingers before toying with the pinkish cartilage of her ears.

"Where you do learn to kiss like that?" 

"Nowhere. I had to do it from my imagination," Heloise said in a coy manner. But when she refused to meet Marianne's gaze, she knew Heloise was hiding something from her.

She tipped Heloise's chin with her index finger, trying to search for an answer in those deep blue eyes. "Tell me?" she requested. 

Heloise eyes flickered at her for a few moments to find the courage to let out her secret. "You're my first kiss." 

"Really?" Marianne asked with widened eyes. Heloise shyly nodded her head.

Marianne caressed her face and pulled her closer. "How do you feel?"

"My lips feel so weird." Heloise touched her lips with her fingers. "Actually I can't feel them at all." 

Marianne placed a gentle kiss on the tip of her nose. "I'm sorry."

"Is it supposed to be this droopy?" Heloise continued "Because I'm sure it'll fall off from my face."

Marianne squished her face and laughed. She brought her lips on Heloise's and kissed it, leaving waves of tingles on it as she parted her lips.

"But I can get used to it." Heloise smiled.

Marianne bit on Heloise's lips. "So," she twirled Helosie's damp curls between her fingers. "Care to show me more of what's happening in that head of yours?" 

"I thought you wanted to go to class." Heloise chuckled.

"Sure. Let's go" Marianne turned away from her. A hand grabbed her by her waist and she was in Heloise's arms again.

\---

Marianne and Heloise exited the locker room, both their faces red out of embarrassment. Heloise pushed the janitor's washing cart in front of them which was blocking their way.

"That was close." said Heloise.

"Yeah I was very close to tripping on the tiles when you pushed me." Marianne hmphed and walked ahead of Heloise by taking long strides.

Heloise slid her hands in Marianne's. "I'm so sorry. She caught me by surprise when she walked in." 

Marianne pursed her lips and quickened her steps. "Sorrrryy. I shouldn't have pushed you." she apologised again with her beady blue eyes. 

Marianne couldn't stay angry at her for long and she gave her a light peck on the cheek. "Don't worry about it."

They both had almost reached the lecture hall. Marianne took a few hurried steps and stopped beside the door. She quickly put her hand in front of Heloise who was going to barge in the classroom, "Where do you think you're going?"

"Inside the class?!" 

"Wait." Marianne peeked in through the window. Good old Nicole had saved two seats for them in the back of the class. "There's two seats in the back. Stay right behind me," she told Helosie who nodded her head in acknowledgement.

Marianne took a deep breath and opened the door slightly. "May we come in?"

"Good morning Marianne. Late, as usual, I see." the professor said. "What's your reason today?"

Marianne walked up to the professor and whispered a few words. "You may both sit down," she said and gestured with her hand.

Marianne motioned Heloise to come inside and they both started to walk towards the back of the class. "Please occupy the seats in the front," she said flatly. 

Marianne groaned silently and threw her bags in the front. Heloise sat in the seat beside her. The professor turned to the board to continue her lecture.

"What did you tell her?" Heloise asked in a whisper.

"I told her the shower head stopped working in between." 

"And she believed you?!"

"It's not like she's going to go check the plumbing, is she?" Marianne chuckled.

"How do you even come up with these excuses?"

"When you're late to almost everything, you have to be creative. If you recycle it too much, you tend to get caught a lot faster." 

"What's your favourite?"

"That Coach Armand left us all late. But I can't use it anymore." Marianne sighed.

"Why's that?"

"This one-time last year, I used it on one of the teachers who got highly suspicious that I was lying. So she went and complained to him. And boy, did I get into a hell lot of trouble for that." Marianne laughed.

The professor banged her marker on the table causing them both to sit up straight in their seats. "First, you come late. And second, you can't stop talking." she snapped at them. "Do you girls want to be thrown out of the class?". 

Marianne shook her head vigorously while a stunned white-faced Heloise stared at the professor. She gave them a warning glare before continuing with her lecture. Once she had turned her back to them, they both giggled at each other and proceeded to take out their notebooks and stationery to get ready for class.

Marianne turned her eyes to the board. But she knew where Heloise's eyes were. She tried to concentrate on the topic that the professor was lecturing on. It was some SPD block nonsense with its rules and conventions and special cases. It was a hard enough topic already and Heloise's eyes all over her did not make it any easier.

"I'm trying to study." Marianne narrowed her eyes at Heloise.

"So who's stopping you?"

"I can't study if you keep looking at me like that."

"Like what?" Heloise's lips turned into devilish curve.

"Just stop looking at me." Marianne returned her concentration back to the board.

Heloise chuckled and looked away, but kept stealing sneaky glances at her. The sharp scratches from the nib of Heloise's pencil pricked her ear and diverted her focus from the lecture. Marianne finally lost all her will to study and closed her book and decided that there were much more interesting things to pay attention to. 

Marianne crossed her arms and leaned back on her seat, sizing up Heloise as she captured the golden locks of her hair and tied it up in a ponytail. Heloise put her hands on her neck stretched it backwards, making a vein pop out that left Marianne weak in the knees.

Marianne's fingers wandered on her own lips as she focused on Heloise's fingers that lay beside her neck. She ran her eyes across Heloise's arms before meeting the electrifying blue eyes. Heloise had stopped moving and was staring at her dumbfounded.

Marianne leaned forwards, feeling an intense urge to kiss her, but held herself back knowing they weren't the only ones in the room. She wanted nothing more than this class to get over.

\---

Marianne slumped on her seat and groaned in agony as the professor left the class. She had ended up taking a double lecture and Marianne's body was aching because of the torture of studying which electron went into which shell. _Damn those stupid atoms_ she cursed under her breath.

She got up from her seat and stretched her body. Heloise had hunched her back on the desk and was trying to catch some sleep. Marianne patted her on her back. "Give me two minutes" Heloise murmured.

Marianne's eyes went to the back of the class. She noticed Nicole who also had her head on the table and was trying to sleep. She walked towards the back seats and placed her hand Nicole's shoulder.

Nicole looked at her through half-lidded eyes. She got up and put her arms around Marianne's neck who placed a kiss on her cheek as she wrapped her own arms around Nicole. "How are you feeling today?" Marianne asked her.

"Not so good. My head still hurts." Nicole pouted her face. 

Marianne massaged her scalp by using the tip of her fingers. "Poor you."

A nervous pair of blue eyes met her green ones as she noticed Heloise shuffling on her toes, her fingers rubbing nervously. Marianne smiled at her but Heloise turned her face away from her and walked to the window.

"Let's eat lunch?" she asked Nicole. 

"Yes please." Nicole let go of Marianne and held Marianne by her arms. "Lead the way." 

Marianne paused for a quick moment by her seat to pick up her bags. "Shall we go?" she asked Heloise.

Heloise gave her an uncomfortable nod and followed behind the two girls who were hand in hand.

\---

Marianne chose a seat right in the middle of a filled cafeteria. Heloise rushed to sit beside her, but Nicole beat her to it. Heloise furrowed her eyebrows and put on a dejected face as she sat opposite to them. 

She folded her arms and stared intensely at Marianne for a few seconds. " _Come sit here._ " she motioned Marianne with her eyes. 

"Next time." Marianne said aloud. Heloise's face immediately fell.

Marianne puckered her lips and blew her small a kiss. That was consolation enough for Heloise. Heloise's angelic smile immediately returned to her face.

Marianne took out the four packed boxes from her bag. "Let me help you open it" said Nicole.

Nicole opened the one with a salad and the one braised lamb chops while Marianne opened the one with bread and the last box with some assorted fruits.

"Do you come to school to study or to feast?" Heloise teased her.

"I'm always famished" Marianne stuffed two spoonfuls of salad in her mouth.

"It's true. I have never seen Marianne not be hungry." Nicole added.

Marianne chomped on the crunchy braised lamb. "The same applies to you." 

"Who are you kidding? I'm never as hungry as you are." 

"I'll let the packets of potato chips strewn in your room speak for itself." Marianne snickered stuffing two more spoonfuls of salad

"And may I ask you how know that?" Heloise asked.

"I've spent half my life at her place. Of course, I'd know it!" Heloise shifted tensely in her seat at the new insight in Marianne's and Nicole's life history. She put her hands on the table in front of her and refused to meet Marianne's eyes.

Marianne wiped the mayonnaise from the corners of her mouth by using her palms. Nicole repulsed. "Look here," she told Marianne. 

She held Marianne's face and wiped her mouth with a napkin, taking utmost care to wipe off the corners of her mouth. "Better." Nicole had a satisfied look on her face as she cleaned the last bit. Heloise crossed her arms and sat back on her seat. She didn't look too happy.

Nicole gently pulled Marianne's cheeks."You never going to change, are you?"

Heloise lost her last straw of being able to handle Nicole touching Marianne. "I'm going to wash my hands," Her blue eyes were flaming at Marianne sending a shiver down her spine. "Are you going to come?"

Marianne did not have to be asked twice. She promptly got up and followed Heloise who had now started walking towards the restroom.

"You haven't finished your food." said Nicole, but Marianne turned a deaf ear to her concern.

\---

She cupped Heloise's face as she picked Marianne up and put her on the slab. "We should at least lock the dooo—," her last words got muffled as an eager Heloise swooped on her mouth. Her tongue rolled on hers in haste to explore the mysterious corners of her mouth. She pulled Marianne's face towards, letting it speak of her want to pull Marianne closer to her.

"Wouldn't that look suspicious?" she argued between the hungry kisses she planted on her upper lip. "What would you think if you encountered locked doors during lunch hours?" 

"I would lock the doors from the outside." Marianne chuckled and swivelled her body evading Heloise's hands that had slipped down to her waist. "And leave them to their fate." She dashed to the door.

Heloise moved swiftly and pinned her against the wall. _Aha_ , a sweet victory. She celebrated it by gently biting on Marianne's lips.

"I wouldn't mind that," she said with a deadly smirk on her face. Marianne knew she was a sucker for it. She grabbed Heloise by her shirt and pulled her, kissing her harder than she ever had.

"So let me." Marianne ducked from under her arms and sprinted to the door to lock it. Her lips curved into a mischievous smirk at the sound of the door latching. _Heloise was now hers._

She could feel the fiery blue eyes preying on her. Marianne felt the heat rise up from her stomach to her chest. She could have sworn the blood was pumping in the opposite direction of its original flow. 

Marianne took hushed, calculated steps towards her, so contrasting from the rushed actions just seconds before. The green eyes were on the pulsing vein on her muscled neck. Marianne put on of her hands on Heloise's waist and the other behind her head to protect her from the impact as she pushed her against the wall.

She traced her jawline with her lips before hovering her neck. "Can I?" her lips grazed against Heloise's throbbing vein.

"Mhmm" Heloise consented.

Heloise whimpered at the line of soft kisses that Marianne let on her neck as she made her way down to the edge of her collarbones. Marianne bit down on her erogenous area and sucked on it. Heloise whimpered as her skin was pulled by Marianne's pining lips.

Marianne sucked on it far too long than she should have and it was too late before she realised it. She quickly pulled back and inspected the area. It had turned bright red. "Shit" she muttered under her breath.

"Why did you stop?" Heloise asked.

"I think I left a hickey." she said worriedly. "I'm so sorry."

"What's a hickey?" 

"Uhh.." Heloise's eyes followed Marianne's fingers as she circled a red patch with a black mole in its centre. "That is a hickey. It is considered a mark of possession by the person giving it. But sometimes it also happens in the heat of the moment. Like now."

"Are you sure it was by mistake?" Heloise raised her eyebrows.

"Maybe." Marianne chuckled. "No, I'm just joking." she waved her hands in front of Heloise. "I would never give you one without your permission. I hope you're not angry. I should have been more careful."

"Why would I be angry?"

"A lot of people don't like it because it tells other people what you've been up to." Marianne said with a naughty smile on her face. 

"Do you like it?"

"Do you want to give me one?" 

Heloise eyes glistened. "Can I?" The colour rose to Marianne's neck. Never ever had she wanted to be marked so badly. But she tried to stay calm. "Sure." 

"You'll have to show me how to."

Marianne put her mouth on the mark that she'd already created. "Make an O with your mouth. Place it where you want to. And suck on it. Like this." A slight sniffle escaped Heloise's lips as she created a vacuum between her skin and mouth. Marianne moved her lips away but not before placing soft kisses on her neck. "If you do it long enough, it'll leave a mark." she circled over it which had now turned dark red.

"Okay my turn now," Heloise said with a mischievous smirk on her face.

Marianne's breath stifled. "Don't bite too hard."

Heloise placed a flurry of kisses along her neckline, escalating the rush in her veins by tenfold. She stretched her neck as Heloise dug her teeth into it, the sting inducing pleasurable sensations in Marianne.

Suddenly there was a rampant knock on the door but Heloise kept going, and with each passing second, Marianne found it harder to restrain her moans. 

"Open the door!" said an angry voice from the outside and furiously banged on the door. Marianne should have pushed Heloise away, but instead held her neck and brought her closer.

She exhaled in relief as Heloise left her neck, leaving a wet spot as she did so. Heloise had a triumphant smile on her face as she cleaned it using the sleeves of her shirt.

"I'll handle them. You go and hide in one of the bathrooms." Marianne said and placed a kiss on her neck. She watched Heloise as she locked the door behind her.


	21. Confession

Marianne opened the door and mumbled her apologies to a group of three angry girls who glared at her the entire time while she patiently waited for them to leave. Once they left, Marianne knocked on Heloise's door. "You can come out."

A disturbed Heloise came out with her nose clenched. "There's no way in _hell_ I'm going in there again." She opened the tap, washed her hands and face and dried it using her shirt.

Marianne tried to kiss her but Helosie stopped her midway. "I've seen things in there that cannot be unseen." She pointed to the bathroom door. "We're leaving." Heloise grabbed her wrist and dragged her back to the cafeteria.

Marianne took her seat beside Nicole, who was almost done eating her lunch. The quiet table was filled by chatter around them, while Heloise and Marianne hogged their food in the small time frame they had before the break got over.

"What took you so long?" Nicole inquired.

"Too many kids" Marianne shifted, uncomfortable with the lie she was telling her.

"Okay." Nicole leaned back on her chair crossed her legs and put an arm over her chair.

Marianne felt a pair of suspicious black eyes inspecting her. A trickle of sweat sloped down her back partly owing to the sultry weather and the other due to Nicole's strange looks. Marianne ruffled her hair and used it to cover her neck as much as she could. Nicole raised her eyebrows. Marianne gulped. Nicole squinted her eyes at Marianne as she drummed the tabletop with her fingers.

Marianne parted her lips, troubled at the manner Nicole was reading her. She rarely kept things from Nicole and guilt of lying to her made her stomach churn.

She jumped at the sudden sound the bell ringing in the cafeteria. Nicole's eyes kept staring at her and Marianne had lost her nerves by this point. "Walk me back home after school," she told Nicole as they stood up.

\---

The final bell rang and Heloise, Marianne and Nicole made their way to the main entrance gate.

"Will you come a little early tomorrow?" Heloise asked Marianne.

"I'll try to," she answered. Heloise squeezed Marianne's hand before they parted their ways.

Nicole and Marianne walked a certain distance before Nicole asked "So?"

Marianne kicked a stone that was in her path. "There's something that I need to tell you,"

"Yeah go on."

Marianne put her hands in her pocket and took quick long steps towards the stone to kick it again. Her eyes followed it as it went and hit a tree on the sidewalk. Her heart pounded on her chest as Nicole stood beside her. Marianne didn't know why she was so nervous.

"You have to promise not to tell anyone," Marianne said.

"I promise."

"So...uh" Marianne toed the ground. "There's this someone who I like."

"Marianne!" Nicole exclaimed in glee. "Is it someone I know??"

"Yeah."

"Who is it?!"

Marianne's face felt as it had been blown by hot steam. "Do you want to guess?"

Nicole laughed. "It's Heloise, isn't it?"

Marianne gaped at Nicole for a couple of seconds. "How did you know!?"

"It's about time. I thought you'd never realise it."

"Good lord Nic! How did you know?" she asked again.

"You've been bothered by her from the very first day you met her. Thirteen years have been long enough for me to read you well." Nicole curved her arms around Marianne's elbow. "Plus it's not like you didn't have your hands all over each other the past week."

"Shut up." Marianne nudged Nicole.

"Does she know?"

"Know what?"

"That you like her."

Marianne fidgeted her fingers, "No."

"Why not?"

"I don't know." Marianne sighed. "Maybe it's because when I've told someone I like them, things have turned ugly or it's come to an end."

Nicole stroked her arms trying to offer her comfort. "And I don't want to lose her," Marianne's voice cracked.

Nicole kissed her temple. "You won't."

\---

"How much more time?" Marianne asked jumping impatiently on her toes.

"It's not even 7:20. What has gotten into you today?" Her mother stirred the vegetables in the pan.

"The Coach told us to come a little early today."

"Then you should have told me last night instead of ten minutes back." she snapped.

"But but..."

"If you are in such a hurry then help me in packing the boxes."

Marianne eagerly filled it with food as quick as she could. But the neatness in which she executed the task was highly problematic. She spilt food from the sides, inviting a backlash from her mother who wiped the mess her daughter had made with a cloth, "Asking you to do a task increases my workload by threefold. It's better not to ask you to do anything."

Marianne checked her watch. 7:23. "My _practiicce_ " she whined, definitely not referring to her volleyball practice.

The milk in the pot overboiled and spilt on the gas stove. "Heavens have mercy on me." Her mother turned off the stove. "Look what you made me do." she glared at Marianne.

"But I didn't even do anything."

She ignored her daughter's rebuttal. "Quick! Help me clean it up"

Marianne groaned. _What a perfect day for everything to go wrong._

By the time she'd cleaned up the spill and packed her lunch, she was already late.

"What's that on your neck?" her mother asked just as she was about to leave.

Marianne panicked. "Just a bruise from the ball that hit me."

"A bruise from a ball that hit the _side_ of your neck?" her mother raised her eyebrows in question.

"Yeah. Happens all the time," she said nervously.

"Let me see it." her mother said and brushed the hair out of her neck.

"Mom! I'm already late." Marianne dashed out of her house. There was no way in _hell_ she was going to let her mother inspect the darned area.

\---

"Funny that I actually believed you'd come early" Heloise jested but Marianne could feel the hurt in her voice.

"I already told you about the whole fiasco that happened this morning."

"Yeah yeah." Heloise bent and pulled down her shorts.

"I'll try to come early tomorrow." Heloise slipped her fingers underneath her shirt on her neck and took it off in one quick motion. Marianne stepped towards her but Heloise locked herself behind the door.

Marianne sighed and checked her watch. 9:39. She leaned back on the wall and watched her teammates as they played hopscotch using the tiles as the rectangles to jump.

It was Annette's turn and she was doing quite well till the time her leg almost grazed the floor tiles.

"Your leg touched the floor!" Amelie shouted at Annette.

"No, it did not!" Anette defended herself. "See it was like this." and Annette balanced herself on one foot while her other foot just about touched the tiles.

"It didn't touch the floor" Marianne supported Annette, leaning away from the wall. "I saw it."

Annette stuck out her tongue at Amelie. "Hah!"

Marianne's arms were pulled by Sophie. "It's your turn," not giving Marianne a choice and pushed her to the start point.

Marianne ran the course mentally through her head once. "Move," she told the juniors who were blocking her way.

"1,2....9..."Marianne hopped almost perfectly. " _And 10"_ Marianne muttered before she stumbled in front of a tall figure who caught her by the shoulders.

"Careful." said a raspy voice.

And there stood Heloise, with only a towel wrapped around her waist and a black sports bra. Marianne stared at her dumbstruck. Blood rushed to her cheeks. Sure, Marianne had seen her naked before. But never had she _beheld_ her.

Her eyes followed the length of Heloise shapely strong arms which held her shoulder, tracing the sharp lines of her clavicle till the edge where lay the dark patch of passion which was surrounded by her curls dripping with water. Marianne bit her lip.

Her eyes continued the journey down the curve of her hips, resting to admire the light perpendicular cuts on her ribs just below her bosom. They travelled further down to her navel where the towel loosely hung on her waist. _One swift motion and..._ Marianne felt hot flashes on her face. Afraid of intruding any longer, she averted her gaze and cleared her throat.

"It's time. Everyone start moving!". Marianne felt the electricity circuit her body as they waited for everyone to clear the room.

Marianne couldn't wait two seconds before she curved her arms around Heloise's waist and pulled her into a hug. She pressed her lips on the hollow of Heloise's shoulders as she ran her hands through the wet curls, planting soft kisses on either side of her neck. She cupped Heloise's face as she hovered over the full pink lips.

Heloise's hands through Marianne's wet hair as pulled her into an affectionate kiss. "I missed you." Heloise hummed as she left a lasting burn on Marianne's lips.

"Me too." Marianne breathed. Her heart was pounding on her chest. The words bubbled in Marianne's chest. Showing Heloise what she felt about her wasn't enough anymore. Heloise had to know. "I need to tell you something."

"Hm?" Heloise's remarkable blue eyes caught her off guard.

Marianne took a deep breath. "I really like—" The door opened with a crash stopping Marianne mid-sentence. Hurried footsteps took a turn into the main area. Marianne instinctively held Heloise by her shoulder and pushed her away to an arms distance, taking care not to make her fall.

A short dark-haired girl stopped abruptly in front of them. "Marianne? Heloise? What are you doing here?"

"What are _you_ doing here?" Marianne asked her back removing her hands from Heloise.

"I left my bag," Sophie said, picking up her satchel. "What about you guys?"

Marianne and Heloise looked back and forth trying to find an excuse to why they were here, _together._

"We were bunking class for a bit," Marianne said truthfully. Yes, they were indeed bunking class. But Sophie didn't have to know _why._

"What subject do you have?"

"I don't know. Do you?" she looked at Heloise had now worn her shirt and jeans and had a cherry-coloured blush on her face.

"Math" Heloise helped her out.

Sophie narrowed her eyes at Marianne and laughed, "When did you start bunking Math? Last time I checked you could write poetry on it." Marianne turned red in her face. _Not so helpful after all._

"I was completing an assignment that the teacher gave us to work on. Heloise offered to help me out."

"Are you almost done?" Sophie inquired.

"Yeah. We were just about to leave."

"Do you want to leave together?"

"Sure." Marianne slung the bag on her back. Sophie turned around the corner and walked out of the locker room.

Heloise inched closer and pressed her lips on her ear "So, is this assignment of yours fun to work on?"

"Exceedingly," Marianne weaved away from Heloise's arms. "But it'll have to be put on hold for the time being."

Heloise put on a grumpy face but it just made her cheeks puff out like a soft fluffy pillow. Marianne squished her face with both her hands and gave her an affectionate peck on the lips.

"You were going to say something," Heloise slung her bags on her shoulders.

Marianne gulped "Later. I don't want to miss Math."

"Fine" A sullen Heloise was dragged outside the locker room where they rejoined Sophie who was waiting for them.

"By the way, there's some _dirt_ on your neck" Sophie pointed to the maroon blotch. Marianne hurriedly took out her towel and wrapped it around her neck, making sure not to take it off till they parted their ways.

\---

The rest of the week was spent in Marianne explaining the deviation from her usual behaviour.

Marianne's mother couldn't understand _how_ her daughter had suddenly started waking up on time to leave for practice on time. Sophie and Amelie missed their company back to class. When they offered to wait for their third musketeer to join them, she kept declining their invitation.

Nicole, on the other hand, ended up lecturing Marianne that she couldn't repeatedly come late to class since her parents would be notified. "What else can I do?" Marianne complained as they both walked back home.

Nicole gave her an apologetic smile. "Have you told Heloise yet?"

"No," Marianne had tried her hardest the whole week to tell Heloise how she truly felt about her but something or someone came in between. Or Marianne fear grappled her throat and she swallowed the words in her mouth. "Nic, how do I tell her?" she whined.

"Don't think too much about it" Nicole gave Marianne a tight hug. "Just tell her."

\---

Marianne was just about to sleep when her phone buzzed.

H : Hey

M : Hi

H : Meet me tomorrow?

M : 5pm sounds okay?

H : Works for me.

M : I'll see you then. Good night !

H : Marianne wait

M : Yes ?

H : I miss you

M : I miss you too

H : can't wait to see you

\---

Marianne lay with her back on her lush grass as she watched the sky with red streaks laced with purple hues. The clouds danced to the beats of the music that she was listening to. Heloise sat with her knees folded while she painted the landscape on her pad.

Marianne paused the music which she was playing on her phone and unplugged her earphones. "I have never seen you paint before,"

"I can't paint with watercolours in class, can I?" Heloise chuckled.

The air was getting chillier and Marianne longed for some warmth. She tapped Heloise's hand. "Hey hey I'm painting." she pointed.

"You've been painting for so long." Marianne leaned her head so that it rested on her broad shoulders.

Heloise took off the pad from her lap. "Come here" she pointed to her belly. Marianne snuggled comfortably on the squishy layer of fat. Heloise kept her brush aside as one arm wrapped around her shoulder and the other ran her hands through Marianne's silky black hair.

"What are you listening to?" Heloise asked.

Marianne took out her earphones and offered it to her. "Hold on," Heloise said and dived into her bag. She took out a pair of earphones and a twin jack. "Connect it to this." Marianne's lip curved upon her upper lips as she connected both the earphones to the jack.

She pressed the play button. Heloise's face immediately lit up. "Taylor Swift!!"

"Do you like her?"

"You belong with meeeeee" Heloise performed the lyrics, confirming the answer to Marianne's question.

Marianne and Heloise jammed to the rest of the song as loudly as they could. _Who cares about passerbys anyway?_

Heloise took out the earphones as soon as the song ended. Her eyes suddenly had a sudden seriousness to them. "This song reminded me of something."

"What of?"

"Actually it's more of a confession," she picked a blade of grass from the soil. "I get jealous of Nicole sometimes."

Marianne raised her head up so that she was at Heloise's eye level. "But why?"

"I envy the understanding that you have with each other."

"Aww Heloise..." Marianne stroked her cheeks. "I've known her for..." Marianne counted the years in her head. "About thirteen years now. When you know someone for that long, you learn their smallest quirks." Heloise's eyes dropped to the blades of grass that she was picking.

"Hey, look at me." Marianne tipped her chin and looked deep in those greyish-blue eyes. "Remember when Sophie barged in the other day?"

"Yeah."

"And I was about to tell you something but I didn't?"

Heloise nodded her head. "I was going to tell you that I really like you." her voice resonated in the air around them. "I _really really_ like you."

Heloise's eyes glistened. "Really?"

Marianne traced her cheekbones with her finger. "Yes. Really." A wide grin lit Heloise's face.

"What's your surname?" Heloise asked.

"Why do you ask?"

"Just tell me."

"Delmas"

Heloise put her hands around her mouth, mimicking a speaker and yelled. "I REALLY LIKE YOU TOO MARIANNE DELMAS"

Marianne put her hands on Heloise's mouth and giggled as she pushed her down on the grass. "Calm down."

Heloise spread out her arms over the grass and laughed like there was nothing to do _but laugh_ in this world.

Marianne's heart fluttered as Heloise's eyes shined at her. She put her hands on the grass beside Heloise and kissed her affectionately. 

Marianne broke the kiss as she cradled Heloise's cheeks. "Will you go on a date with me?"

"When?"

"Tomorrow, same time?"

Heloise had a wide grin on her face. "What do you have in mind?"


	22. Chapter 22

Marianne chose an emerald green bow tie which matched the colour of her eyes. She adjusted it near her collar by focusing on the reflection in the mirror. _Hm, perfectly centred._ A quick brush of her fingers through her polka-dotted white shirt smoothened the crinkles before she buttoned the cuff of her sleeves. Her dark trousers were loose around the waist and to remedy it, she picked out a belt from the many hanging on the hooks of her wall and slid it through the pant loops.

Marianne was strangely out of breath. _God_ was she nervous. She fluttered her hands in the air in order to shake out the jitters that she was feeling. She picked up the comb from her dressing table and ran it through her hair. A few repetitions later she hair was neatly slicked back, in place.

 _I hope this is enough_ , Marianne chewed her nails as picked up the red rose that was kept atop her dressing table.

She quietly opened her room door and tiptoed her way across the hall, maintaining stealth mode until she reached the front door. She twisted the doorknob with care, hoping it wouldn't make any noise. The task was perfectly executed but a sharp creak on pushing the door gave her away. _Magically_ out of thin air her mother appeared behind her.

"You look dapper honey!" she said with a warm smile on her face. Marianne swiftly put her hands behind her back.

"Thanks, mom," She pushed the door ajar and stepped outside. "I'll be back soon."

"Have fun with Nicole!" 

Marianne flinched. "Yes, I will" She closed the door behind her.

* * *

Marianne took hurried steps around the curb. A few more strides and she would reach their agreed meeting point.

She halted when a young woman, probably in a rush herself, almost knocked into her. _Whew,_ Marianne pushed her hair back, thanking her luck. She resumed her walk, now keeping an eye on people who passed by her, not wanting to be banged into.

Marianne glanced at a girl who was leaning against the wall. Her head was slightly bent as if she were observing the intricate design on tiles of the street.

She didn' take much notice of her until the girl looked up at her through her peripheral vision. A pair of familiar blue eyes met the hazel ones. Marianne stopped abruptly in her path and looked over her shoulder. Heloise's rouge lips curved into a smirk. 

Heloise leaned away from the wall making the black dress, laced with frills, sway with her. A few strands from Heloise's golden locks fell on the fiery blue eyes which were focused on Marianne's entire being. Marianne felt her breath being taken away. _Could fire be an element that pierces her soul? she wondered._

Marianne did nothing but gape at her. Time froze. People around her became blurry like a bespectacled human without specs. The only one in razor focus was Heloise, with that _ungodly_ smirk on her face. And _God,_ was she going to worship those lips.

The rose that Marianne was holding fell on the ground as she strode towards Heloise, oblivious of the people she could have potentially knocked into and smashed her lips on the rouge ones.

Marianne's tongue tasted berries from Heloise's lips, probably from Wonderland, because they were as intoxicating as a bee drunk on honey. She felt effervescent and drowsy at the same time. Heloise pulled back, panting, struggling with breathlessness.

Marianne lips curved into a mischievous smile. "We should leave before my girlfriend gets here."

"Did you just call me your girlfriend?" Heloise raised her eyebrows in question.

"You get to decide that."

"We should leave before my girlfriend gets here too" Heloise giggled.

Marianne lent her arm. "Shall we go inside?"

"Sure." Heloise curved her arms around Marianne, resting it comfortably in the concave of her elbow and they made their way up the stairs.

* * *

"Tickets please." said a tall burly man, dressed in a suit. Marianne handed over two white slips, which he inspected carefully with furrowed brows.

A few moments passed before he said in a charming voice, "Welcome to the Great Tragedy of Orpheus and Eurydice. I hope you, young ladies, have a lovely evening." and opened the door for them.

Marianne hadn't taken two steps inside and she was already blinded by the plethora of bright yellow lights. The theatre was huge and the acoustics were proper as she could hear the chatter of the hundreds of people around her, most of whom were seated while the others were settling down.

Marianne held Heloise's hands as they made their way down before stopping in front of one of the middle rows. "Excuse me. Sorry." she apologised as they stumbled on peoples legs as they made their way across to their seats.

Lights dimmed. A translucent grey mist slowly enveloped the stage and dripped from its nook, just as Heloise's fingers traced Marianne's thighs. The spotlight shined on a young man seated on a rock dressed in sparkling red attire with a golden lyre in his hand.

The conductor cued the music. Marianne immediately recognised it as the Four Seasons by Vivaldi.

_Spring_

A melodious trill emerged from his lyre as he skillfully picked its strings. The nymphs joyously capered about him in circles, just as Heloise created circles on the erogenous area of her skin. Each and every living being, even the beasts, who could hear the slightest sounds from his lyre joined the dance, unable to resist the spell that he was weaving with his music as did Marianne as she found herself leaning towards the blonde.

A young woman, voluptuous in a sparkling blue gown skipped into his presence and for Orpheus, he was now cast under her spell. Orpheus frolicked in circles around her, serenading the woman he'd fallen in love with. His music was more lively, more melodious than he had ever played in his short life. A symphony of notes that would profess his love for the most stunning woman that he had ever laid his eyes upon.

_Summer_

A congregation of Gods and humans alike roused into a cheer as the sprightly couple got married. Heloise laughed in glee and so did Marianne and brought Heloise's knuckles up to her lips and kissed it. The music picked up its pace and the congregation overlapped with each other into a zestful dance. Lights of blue flashed on Eurydice and blue on Orpheus as they exulted their passion for each other through their dance on their nimble feet.

As the music almost came to a close, Orpheus bent one of his knees, prepared to take _his forever_ in his arms. Eurydice bounded towards Orpheus and lept on him. His strong arms held in the air and twirled in the purple mist, an amalgamation of the blue and red, that had enveloped the couple, _who were now one_. 

_Autumn_

Orpheus gently let her down and she did a pirouette under the umbrella of his palms. Heloise's moved Marianne's hand's over to her lips and showered it with soft kisses. Summer came to a close and entered a woman in white, introducing herself as the Goddess of Marriage, one of the last remaining immortals to shower her blessings on the newlywed couple. Her blessing was in the form of a foretelling;

 _"Your love is true, but it's not meant to last.  
_ _Heaven will weep when the fair maiden departs."_

Eurydice fell on her knees and wept and so did the soft-faced Heloise. Hot tears streamed down Marianne's knuckles. Marianne looked over at Heloise, worriedly. She put an arm around her and Heloise rested her head in the concave of her shoulders.

Unable to digest prophecy, Eurydice ran into the woods, leaves and thorn from branches pricking her flesh, her entire soul. Marianne felt herself running with her, scared, in fear. Eurydice tripped over superficial roots of a tree, or she thought so. The root suddenly came alive and took the form of a venomous snake. Angry at being awoken it bit her ankle. An agonising shrill resonated throughout the theatre. Lights dimmed and the mist ascended from the stage, portraying that she had descended to the _Underworld._

_Winter_

Orpheus played his lyre and the Gods in Olympus and the mortals in the human realm could hear his dirge, melodious but infused with sorrow and grief, lamenting the tragedy of his Ladylove.

His heart belonged to Eurydice and with each passing day, his heart ached a thousand times more than the previous. The only remedy for his sorrow was to be reunited with his love in flesh.

Orpheus, resolved, packed his faithful friend, his golden lyre and departed to the Land of the Dead. Apollo, his father warned him not to make the journey but Orpheus had already made up his mind; there was no use in living without his beloved.

Protected by the powers of Gods, Orpheus reached the Stygian realm of Hades. He encountered the mighty Cerberus, but even it was tamed when it heard the dismal music of his lyre.

Lights suddenly went out and so did the background score. The theatre was pitch dark and soundless as Orpheus opened the gates. The symphony resumed at a fast pace just as the stage was lit up in colours of bright orange which illuminated the presence of the vicious Hades, his vile laugh booming across the walls of the theatre. But gallant Orpheus stood his ground and demanded Eurydice's release.

Hades impressed by the valour of this young man, granted his wish, that Eurydice can join him, but under one condition, _that he mustn't look back, or else he shall lose her forever._

Delighted, he made his journey back to the Realm of Humans, with his ladylove right behind him.

"He won't look back will he?" Heloise's voice shook as they waited in bated breath.

The air in the theatre suddenly became colder as they anticipated the journey of Orpheus and Eurydice. Marianne could feel her heart pounding on her chest. Heloise's breath became heavy against her breast.

Blue and Red lights flashed at the end of the tunnel. They were almost there. A few more steps and Orpheus would be holding his beloved in his arms again. But then he suddenly he came to a _standstill_.

"No, no, no" Heloise breath shivered but it was in vain.

Orpheus looked over his shoulder. Heloise sobbed as the woman screamed in agony as she was dragged into darkness by ghosts and souls unknown. Orpheus had lost her _forever._ Flowers around him decayed and the blue lights were the ones shining, sad memory of his lost love.

_Fin_

Heloise cried endlessly in her arms as Marianne wiped her overflowing tears. "He was told not to look back." she cried.

Marianne's chest swelled with the distress of watching Heloise weep. "I know."

* * *

They were the last ones to leave the theatre. Marianne held her protectively by her shoulders and led her to a bench outside where they could be seated. Marianne's body writhed in pain as she watched her cry. _What could be the cause of Heloise's pain? she wondered._

"I'm sorry for ruining the evening," Heloise said as Marianne wiped tears from her cheeks.

"Don't even think that," Marianne said. "Do you want to tell me what pains you?"

Heloise gulped. She took a few moments to gather herself. "The torment of separation is excruciating. My sister..." Heloise broke down again. Marianne held her tightly in her arms.

"I miss my sister." she sobbed and put her arms around Marianne.

"Where is she?" Marianne asked.

"In a better place." and Marianne understood what she meant. And she knew no matter how tightly she held Heloise, her suffering wouldn't lessen.

"We were in our vacation house, on the outskirts of France, in a small village called Brittany."

"The day wasn't any different. My mother and my sister, Jeane had one of their fights in the evening. It had become frequent over the past few months."

"We took a walk soon after like we did while others had their siesta. The grass had grown up to our knees, taller since the last time we walked on the meadows. The sky was clear, but eerily there were neither any birds nor any clouds. I noticed that she was visibly upset and had a feeling that something was amiss."

"She bent down on her knees and told me _I need you to remember something. Will you do that for me?_ "

"I nodded my head. _Remember that I love you. And I'm sorry._ "

"She got up and held my hand as we sauntered to the edge of the cliff. We were closer than we'd ever been before. Jeane had always been careful, to not put herself in any danger. She peered down and I peered down with her and watched the strong frothy waves that lashed on the surface of the dark shiny rocks."

" _We should go back, I said to her,_ "

" _Keep walking_ , she told me instead, _and don't look back no matter what."_

"Her eyes were blank and the blood had flushed out her face. Something about her behaviour struck an odd chord within me."

"I protested but she repeated her words firmly and I hardly ever disobeyed her. So I turned back to retrace our path."

"I had walked just a few steps and I didn't feel anyone behind me. So I looked back. I looked back to see her fragile body disappear at the edge as she fell off the cliff." Heloise broke down in Marianne's arms her tears falling at the rate of a waterfall. Her heart wrenched like water being squeezed out of cloth on seeing Heloise bawl her eyes out.

"I sprinted as fast as my legs could carry me. Fast enough, that I almost slipped off the edge and joined her in those deathly waters." Heloise choked.

"I was 10, Marianne, I was 10." Tears streamed down Marianne's neck. Marianne would have given anything, done anything, sold her soul to the Lord of Death himself if she had to, to carry the burden of pain that Heloise was bearing. 

Heloise's fingers intertwined in Marianne's. "And the worst part is that I never got to say _goodbye._ " Heloise's was shivering by this point. Marianne wrapped her in her arms like a thick rug and stroked her comfortingly.

The minute hands of the clock in Marianne's eyesight ticked as it completed a full revolution and a half in front of her eyes.

Heloise's breath became lighter. "Can we call it a day?" she finally asked.

Marianne nodded her head. "Should I drop you home?"

"Would that be okay with you?"

"Of course" Marianne stood up. "I'll get us a taxi."

* * *

Marianne helped her out of the taxi and closed the door behind her.

"I'll be back in a minute," she told the taxi driver.

Marianne walked Heloise to the front porch. "Can you stay over tonight?" she asked.

"Sure. If that's what you want."

Heloise leaned in and kissed her lips. This time it wasn't fiery. It wasn't craving. It was gentle, pining, a call for help. "Don't leave me alone."

"I won't." Marianne caressed her cheek. " _Wait for me._ "

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey so... I was going to save this till the end of this fic, but it'll probably take longer than I anticipated and I don't how long y'all will stick around, so here goes,
> 
> I was a literal wreck before I watched the movie and discovered this fandom and community. But this movie and community, helped me heal in a way, in the form of fanfics and kind words of encouragement and feedback.
> 
> I consider every single one of you a hero. Especially you, AnnNette. Buddy, you a legit Star in my life. I wouldn't have gotten this far without your support right from Chapter 1. Also a massive thanks to every single one of you who took out your time and left a kudos and a comment. I really really appreciate it!!!!
> 
> And also big thank you and shout out to all those fanfic writers out there who share their world with us!!
> 
> Stay safe everyone <3 See you in the next chapter!!


	23. Chapter 23

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heyyyy it's been long.
> 
> I didn't realise the impact the previous chapter would have on me. I thought I was ready to write what came next but clearly failed to see foresee the hurdles that I'd have to cross. 
> 
> The past month was extremely challenging for me as a writer. Writer's block is real afff and combined with the fear of writing makes it much worse. But what's even life if you don't embrace your fears right??? So here's me giving it a go.
> 
> If anyone wants a song recommendations to read with this chapter with then I'd suggest Ukiyo and I Love You by Riopy:  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8KxPwEDjFM  
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7Bo4-NCEDk  
> I would be forever grateful to this composer for helping me get through this chapter.
> 
> Thanks for reading :))

"What about your clothes?" her mother raised the question from the other end of the phone.

"I'll borrow Nicole's."

"And change of clothes after your practice?"

"I'll borrow it too."

"Do one thing. Why don't you borrow Nicole's whole wardrobe?" she huffed.

"Mother..." Marianne rolled her eyes. "I'll return it to her."

"When?"

"Eventually."

Her mother sighed. "What about your books?"

"They're in my locker."

"What about food?"

Marianne thought for a moment. "I'll buy something from the cafeteria," She growled impatiently, "Now can I please go?"

Her mother let out a long sigh. "Just be on time for school tomorrow."

"I will. Good night, mum"

"Bye dear."

She cut the call and pocketed her phone.

Marianne walked up the pebbled path to a modest-sized house. Her foot awkwardly slipped off stones which were too spherical. Rustling wind greeted her through the array of trees which were on either side of the pebbled path. Even though it was dark, Marianne could imagine the golden rays of the sun scattering as it passed through the leaves of the tall trees early in the morning.

As Marianne neared the house she noticed the glow from the lamps on either side of the front porch lit up the faces of a woman and a girl in a serious discussion. Marianne had promised Heloise that she would stay the night. But she had no idea as to how Heloise's mother would react to it.

As Marianne walked up the stairs, she could sense the tense atmosphere judging from the scowl that had appeared on Heloise's face.

Colette Marchand had noticed Marianne walking up the stairs. "Good evening, Marianne."

"Good evening, Professor."

"Heloise asked me if you could stay over for the night." Colette's eyes had a gravity to them. Marianne could anticipate what was coming next. "Since you both have school tomorrow, I will have to say no."

Marianne didn't look at Heloise afraid that her glower will seethe her too.

"And I'm afraid but you'll have to say your goodbyes here." Colette finished.

"Good night, Heloise." Marianne said.

"I'll see you."

Heloise clenched her palms and shot her mother a death glare before stomping her way inside the house.

Colette let out a deep sigh. She seemed extremely exhausted. "I'm sorry for her behaviour. She gets quite upset when things don't go her way."

"She's not sad, but angry." Marianne explained.

"You think I don't know her anger?" She was almost scornful. "I know it well."

Marianne sighed. "I know it too."

"She's a difficult child. Always has been."

"I think she's misunderstood," Marianne offered.

"But can one be fully understood?"

"One may try."

A gentle smile crept upon Colette's face. "Indeed. But tonight's not the night." Colette patted Marianne's shoulder. "It was nice to meet you outside school, Marianne. Have a nice evening."

"Good night, Professor." 

With each step she took down the stairs, Marianne's heart sank like a heavy piece of metal sinking under the ocean floor. She dove inside her trouser pocket and took out her phone. To her surprise, it already had a notification. She swiped up to reveal a text from Heloise.

H : Do you still want to sleep over?

Marianne blinked a couple of times. The courage of this girl was unmatched.

M : Do you want to be grounded?!

H : That'll happen only if we get caught :P

M : Good lord

H : You promised...

M : I know. But you heard what your mother said

H : Marianne?

M: Yes?

H : You in or you out?!!

Marianne could feel sweat trickling down her temple even though the night was cold and she hadn't quite engaged in any vigorous activity, except maybe now when she was scratching her head furiously. God, Heloise could be extremely persistent at times. Her phone buzzed louder than it ever had which almost made her almost drop it on the ground.

H : ??? Hello ?

M : I'm in.

H : Come to the back door. 

M : On my way

Marianne took a turn from the lampost near the bottom of the stairs which was the only source of light illuminating the path to the backyard.

Marianne felt the uncertainty pricking her consciousness. If the professor stumbled on them by chance they would be totally _annihilated_. She looked back to see the trail of footsteps that she'd left in the viscid mud beneath her feet, the path which didn't look as daring at the one in front of her. A huge part of her wanted to reason with Heloise about this.

But then, she envisioned Heloise waiting for her. With hope. With that smile. That _darned_ smile. That smile which stirred the fulgurant lightning in her heart. So, Marianne continued with her walk but now with a smile on her face. _The things you do for people you care about._

To her delight, Heloise was already waiting for outside for her. And as Marianne had envisioned Heloise had the widest smile lighting up her face.

Marianne wasted no time in engulfing her in a tender embrace. And on the skin of her neck, Marianne felt Heloise's lips spread into an even wider smile.

"Let's go in," Heloise said.

"Where do I leave my shoes?"

"Definitely not here. Take it off and carry it with you. You can keep it inside my room."

Marianne slid off the shoes from her ankles and held it between her fingers.

"Follow me."

Marianne closed the door behind her with an earth-shattering force. Both of them froze where they stood. Marianne could feel the shiver of anxiety go down her spine. _What had she done??_

Their eyes immediately turned to the hallway for any signs of disturbance. Anything that might have aroused suspicion. Thankfully, there was none. 

"You'll get us killed." she hissed. "The whole damn neighbourhood heard that!"

"Sorry."

Heloise took a few steps ahead to peep inside the hall. After a few moments of debating with each other using their eyes, they concluded that it was safe for them to proceed. "Quick" she motioned by curling her fingers on the inside.

This time Marianne was surreptitious. She was nimble on her feet but the stairs still squeaked under them as they made their way up Heloise's room. They'd reached the top and were just about to enter Heloise room when Colette's sharp voice echoed in the hallway.

"Heloise?"

"Go inside." Heloise's voice was copiously sprinkled with trepidation.

Marianne literally dived inside the room. The slight crack of light from the hallway disappeared as Heloise closed the door, leaving Marianne alone in the pitch-black room.

Marianne's heart thumped on her chest at a hundred and fifty beats per minute. This enhanced her auditory sense, in addition to all other senses which were already going haywire, assisting her in comprehending the muffled voices from the other side of the door.

"I'm sorry she had to leave, Heloise. Next time can you let me know ahead of time? That'll let me plan accordingly."

"Sure." she said dimly.

"Thank you for understanding."

She continued, "I know moving here has been hard for you. It's nice to see you're _finally_ making friends."

Heloise didn't respond to that comment.

"Go to sleep soon. You have to wake up early tomorrow."

"Good night mother."

"Good night Heloise."

After a few moments of pin-drop silence, the door opened and Heloise stepped inside.

Marianne opened her mouth to say something but on seeing the clear displeasure on Heloise's face, she chose to stay mum on the exchange between the mother and her offspring.

Heloise didn't say anything. She latched the door and switched on the lights. Marianne covered her eyes with her arm thinking that she'd be blinded by them but was pleasantly surprised. The orangish tinge from the lights was easy on her eyes.

The first thing that Marianne spotted was a guitar propped against the wall near her bed.

"Do you play?" she asked.

"No. My sister did. It one of the few things I have left of hers."

"Do you think she wanted to die?" Marianne suddenly asked.

Heloise was taken aback. Anyone would have missed the slight changes in her body language, but not Marianne. The way her body bent back, hauling her chest up, the way her breath became slower, the way her eyes evaded Marianne's, she'd noticed it all. But Heloise instantly recomposed herself.

"You're the first person unafraid to ask that."

"Apart from you?"

"Not out loud, but yes."

Heloise looked away.

"She left a letter for me in which she apologised."

"What did she apologise for?"

"For leaving me. And she hoped I would understand once I grew older."

"Do you think you understand?"

"Not really."

"Do you want to?"

"I'm not sure." Heloise walked to her bed, arms akimbo, and let out a long fatigued sigh.

"You're still holding your shoes." she remarked.

"I didn't know where to put them."

"Keep it outside in the balcony." Heloise pointed to the door on the other side of the room.

Marianne walked to the door. She pressed down on the button and tried to slide it open but it was jammed shut. "It's not opening."

"It's a little firm," Heloise said. "You'll have to press it harder."

Marianne applied more force but the door refused to budge. "Help?"

Heloise walked towards her. She stood so close to Marianne that she could feel Heloise's breath on her face.

Heloise pressed hard on the button using her thumb and voila, the door slid open like butter in a pan. Her lips curved into a condescending smirk. "There you go, madam," 

Marianne closed the door behind her after she'd kept her shoes on one of the corners of the balcony and stepped back inside the room.

Heloise, who was now standing near the dressing table next to her bed, picked up a matchbox which was kept atop it. She slid open the box and took out a matchstick. She flicked her wrist against the strip of phosphorous and lit the candle which was atop her dressing table. She brought the burning flame close to her lips and blew out the flame. "Let's change."

Heloise opened her cupboard and rummaged through it and took out a shirt and boxer shorts. 

"Feel free to raid." her lips curved into a smile. 

Marianne's face scrunched uneasily looking at the clutter that Heloise had created. "Are you always this disordered?" she grumbled.

"That's definitely a candidate for my middle name," she said proudly.

Marianne shook her head and sifted through the pile of clothes, folding a couple in between so that it at least didn't look like an apocalypse had struck her cupboard. 

Miraculously, she managed to find a black shirt and a pair of shorts that she liked. The garments were made of soft fabric, the smoothness of which glided on her skin. Marianne unfolded the shirt to reveal the signature symbol of Pink Floyd.

"Great choice. It's my favourite shirt." Heloise smiled.

Marianne grinned. "They're one of my favourite bands." 

Heloise walked over to her bed while pinching the hem of her dress with her fingers. She proceeded to take off her dress but stopped midway when she saw Marianne staring at her.

"Uh...can you turn around? I'm not wearing anything underneath."

Marianne obliged and turned a full one-eighty degree. Heloise switched off the lights.

Marianne began unbuttoning her own shirt. Marianne's ears tuned to the ruffling of Heloise's dress behind her. _Heloise was undressing behind her._

Marianne heard the crumple of Heloise's dress as it landed on the floor. Hot blood rushed to her cheeks. Then there was some more ruffling. And then it stopped. Marianne heard the footsteps of a figure approach her. Her shaky fingers fumbled while trying to undo the buttons.

A balmy breath grazed Marianne's neck. Mischievous fingers teased the skin of her stomach as Heloise undid the last button of Marianne's shirt. Marianne's hair stood on it's ends. Heloise took Marianne's shirt off and threw it on the tiled floor. Marianne craned backwards towards Heloise who was warm against her bare back.

"Wear your shirt," she said. "Otherwise I can't stop touching you."

"What if I don't want you to?"

Marianne slightly turned her head. Now the pleasant breath was on her lips. Heloise's supple lips captured her lower lips. Heloise's fingers traced Marianne's atlas, creating a map using her fingertips.

Marianne teased Heloise's lips using her tongue. She lifted the hem of Heloise shirt and touched her warm skin.

Suddenly Heloise pulled back and stepped away.

"Did I do something wrong?" Marianne asked, worried.

"No. No. It's just..." Heloise bit her lips. "Can we not do this today?"

Marianne squeezed her hands. "Of course. What do you want to do?"

"Let's sit outside on the balcony."

\---

Marianne changed into Heloise's clothes and joined her on the balcony.

"Close the door." Heloise said. "Otherwise the mosquitoes will get in.

But don't close it completely. Or else we'll be trapped" she cautioned.

"And we don't want that, do we?" Marianne chuckled and did as she was told.

Heloise crossed her arms over the railing and looked up to gaze at the stars in the sky.

"Have you ever known love?" Heloise asked, her moonlit face now looking at Marianne. 

Marianne ruminated. "No," "Though at one point I did believe I thought I was. But I'm certain now that it was just a stupid infatuation."

"Who was it?"

"Do you know Sid? From the boy's volleyball team?"

"The captain??"

"Yep."

"Realllly??" Heloise could hardly contain the surprise in her voice. 

Marianne looked away, embarrassed. "Don't judge."

"I'm not. What happened?"

"I ended it. After much thought, I realised I was not into him. Or into boys for that matter." Marianne chuckled. That elicited a huge laugh out of Heloise.

"I didn't know I could like someone till I met you." Heloise said, earnestly.

Marianne leaned forward and kissed Heloise tenderly on the cheeks.

"Do you know how to spot the brightest star in the night sky?"

"No. Enlighten me."

Marianne rested her chin in the duvet of Heloise's shoulders and pointed her index finger at the night sky. "Do you see those three stars which are in a straight line?"

"Mhmm. But it's not exactly in a straight line you know?"

"It's a rough estimate, but you get it right?"

Heloise hummed, acknowledging Marianne's question. 

"If you extend it a bit" Marianne moved her hands towards a bright twinkling star, "it points to Sirius; the brightest star in the night sky."

Heloise's eyes locked into Marianne's. Marianne could feel the fervent intensity of the blue eyes warming body.

"I think you got it a little wrong." Heloise gently held Marianne's wrists and rotated it, so that Marianne's fingers were pointing at Marianne. "That's _my_ brightest star."

Marianne heart fluttered, dazing her momentarily. "You need an eye check-up." Marianne gave lousy cover-up for being speechless.

"I'm _Sirius_." Heloise grinned goofily, not missing a beat.

Marianne smacked her own forehead, "What a terrible terrible pun." Heloise was now cackling like a mad woman.

"By the way," Marianne said. "I think we both got it wrong," she rotated her wrists again, so _now_ her fingers were pointing at Heloise. "That's _the_ brightest star in the whole wide universe."

"Shut up" Heloise nudged Marianne coyly.

They were both laughing in amiable spirits, when suddenly out of nowhere, Heloise slapped Marianne's arm.

"Ow what was that for?" Marianne winced.

"Mosquitos." Heloise said and offered no more explanation.

Heloise was right. The annoying attacks from the mischievous troublemakers were sucking the blood from arms. She groaned and grumbled while vigorously scratching the area.

"We should probably go inside before these things bite the shit out of us." Heloise suggested who was scratching her own hands.

"I agree"

Heloise slid the door open and they walked inside. Marianne closed the door behind her.

\---

Heloise's room was infused with the fragrant smell of lemongrass. Marianne's memory rewound to the time her mother brewed lemongrass tea on Saturday evenings.

"Was it a scented candle that you lit earlier?" Marianne asked.

"Yep. Do you like it?"

"I do. It's refreshing."

Marianne walked over to the candle which was currently the only source of illumination in Heloise's room. She couldn't help but be drawn to the guitar that she'd noticed earlier. Marianne inspected the guitar first by only using her eyes. It was a beautiful sunburst dreadnought acoustic guitar with a glossy finish, vignetted around its edges. 

"May I try to play it?" Marianne asked.

"Sure. Why not?"

Marianne picked up the guitar and examined it. It was quite heavy for an acoustic guitar. She strummed down once. The sustain of the sonorous warm tone from the hole was incredibly pleasing to her ears. Her lips curved in delight.

"It's rosewood isn't it?"

"That's correct." Heloise was astonished. But it didn't stop a wide smile which instantly lit up her florid face. "Do you play?"

"I'm not too good at it."

"Play something for me."

Marianne knew a bunch of songs but her mind was suddenly blank and nothing came to her fingertips.

She glanced at Heloise who was gazing at her with soft eyes. An uplifting warmth spread across Marianne's chest.

Marianne focused her musical senses on visioning Heloise in notes, the notes that Heloise radiated.

She started off by playing the scale of G major, one of her favourites and which she was well-versed with. But the simple progression of the octaves couldn't capture Heloise's fire. So she experimented by playing the harmonic variations. The speed with which she plucked were much faster, much more intense, not waiting to stop anywhere in between. The speed of metronome that she'd set just wasn't fast enough. Heloise had all these tones to her, the highs and the lows, the crest and troughs. Nothing could capture who Heloise was, is and had the potential to be.

And so at one point Marianne stopped playing.

She looked at Heloise who had a wide grin on her face.

"Play more" she ushered.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

"Because no combination of notes is enough to describe you. Not enough notes to tell you how much you mean to me."

Heloise walked over and put her hands on Marianne's neck. Marianne rested the guitar on the bed and leaned her head on Heloise's stomach. Heloise gently stroked Marianne's hair.

Heloise sat down beside Marianne. "Try to."

Marianne picked up the guitar again. She stared deep into the blues of Heloise's eyes. She chose to play the arpeggios and plucked the strings of the guitar as delicately and fervently as she could. Heloise's eyes didn't move away from Marianne's for even a second.

Marianne felt the thrum of the guitar strings vibrate from her navel, all the way up to her chest. All the unsaid words being poured into the notes. And she hoped that Heloise felt it too, the sound of Marianne's affection for her.

At one point, Heloise lay with her back on the bed, but her eyes were still glued on Marianne. Right until the time her eyes drooped to the soothing music that Marianne played. And by time Marianne finished, Heloise was fast asleep.

There was something so peaceful about Heloise when she was asleep. Her fire simmered down. All the brave walls that she'd put up around her, at ease. Marianne stared at Heloise for a long time, admiring the features that were accentuated by the candlelight. The golden ringlets of her hair that formed waves on her forehead. The periodic rise and fall of her chest as she breathed with her lips slightly parted. The way her fingers curled inside like a small baby's when Marianne placed her hands in Heloise's. All the little things that made Marianne fall for her a little more.

Marianne put the guitar back where it was. She joined Heloise under the blankets and pulled it comfortably over them. She spooned Heloise who nestled into her, still in deep slumber. Marianne's stopped breathing. According to her calculations pertaining to an average human being, she should be in heaven by now. And nothing made her doubt that for even a second.

"Sweet dreams, my love" Marianne whispered in Heloise's ears.

An innocent smile mysteriously appeared on Heloise's face.

\---

Marianne's woke up to a shivering Heloise, tremors as wild as an earthquake against her skin. Heloise's fingers clutched Marianne's shirt. Heloise's eyes were shut so tight that the top of eyelids was crinkled. Her hair was damp against her forehead which was spotted with fresh sweat.

"Heloise" Marianne whispered and shook her gently. Heloise's skin was ice cold. Marianne tried again but Heloise was still caged in her dream.

"Jeane" Heloise mumbled. Tears fell from the corner of her eyes. "Jeane"

Marianne caressed Heloise's cheeks. "Wake up." A tear sloped down Marianne's cheeks. The pressure on Marianne's shirt increased. Heloise pulled Marianne closer towards her.

And suddenly Heloise screamed. Heloise screamed like she'd been smashed with a rock on her head. She sat up with a jerk still screaming but now she was wide awake.

Marianne sat up with her and placed her hands on Heloise's back. Heloise rested her elbows on her knees while supporting her forehead with her hands. Marianne tried to offer her comfort by rubbing her backside, but the constant weeping from Heloise proved that she was inconsolable. Marianne hugged Heloise from the back and held her while she sobbed to the ends of the world.

"I wish these nightmares would stop." Heloise snivelled.

"Do you remember what it was about?"

"It's hard to forget." she snuffled. "It's the same dream every night. It's always Jeane falling off the cliff. It plays over and over like a loop. It's a ritual that I can't escape. A ritual that haunts me every night. A ritual that I dread"

Marianne held her by her temple and pulled close to her chest. "I'm sorry."

"I just wish it would stop. It's so exhausting that it debilitates me.

Heloise's helplessness rattled Marianne's tear guts. She couldn't even fathom the cascade of emotions that Heloise was undergoing on a daily basis. "How can I help you?" she managed to ask.

"Can we lie down?"

"We can do that." Marianne fell back on the bed. Heloise rested her head on Marianne's chest. Marianne wound her arms around her. Heloise snuggled a little more so that now Marianne could feel the rapid pulsation of Heloise's veins.

Heloise tangled her fingers in Marianne's hair. Her heavy breaths became softer. Heloise soon went to sleep. But Marianne couldn't.


	24. Chapter 24

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Folks! Long time no see :))))

The sunrays creep in through blinds of the light coloured curtains, splaying its warmth on black-haired faired skin girls neck. It rises up to her cheeks all the way to the tip of her eyelashes. Marianne blinks, close eyed, half rolls into Heloise who was softly breathing against her chest. 

Marianne's arms are stiff as a brick made of cement. As much as she would have liked to reposition herself, she dared not, lest she wakes up the golden-haired girl resting peacefully in the cocoon of her arms.

Two hummingbirds sitting on the window sill were chirping melodious tunes, their voices piecing together a melodious symphony. Marianne's eyes are closed but she knows it's them because the trill drums through the canal of her ears. A cherubic smile appears on Marianne's lips which melts onto Heloise's forehead. 

Heloise hadn't moved a bit from the last time she'd woke up. And for that Marianne was thankful. She'd been worried to death that Heloise might wake up screaming again. And even more afraid that it'd would be worse than the previous. Just thinking about it made Marianne curl her toes up in anguish. She wound Heloise a little more tightly around her arms, spreading her wings of unconscious protective instinct. 

Heloise twitched, her shoulders squaring a tiny bit. Her body shrugged into Marianne, her nose rubbing against the fabric of Marianne's shirt muffling her short puppy-like sneeze.

Marianne's eyelids opened in a jolt. _Had her movement woken Heloise up?_

Heloise hauls her head up lazily so that her forehead is touching Marianne's chin. Snakes up a little more, her hair tingling Marianne's sharp jawline along the way. Marianne crawls down, the tiny hairs on her ears brushing against Heloise's lips.

Heloise gently whispers, her voice heavy with the morning raspiness, pleasanter and refreshing than the hummingbirds sitting on the window sill, "Hi."

Heloise's voice makes Marianne's throat dry. Probably from the dehydration since she hadn't had a sip of water since the previous night.

"Morning sleepyhead," Marianne said, with certain hoarseness. She hadn't slept all night and incomplete sleep had taken a toll on her.

"You sound tired." Heloise said. "Did you sleep?"

"Yeah I slept some. How are you feeling?"

"Good," Heloise's cold toes tangle into Marianne's toes. "Warm." she whispers.

Marianne shriveled like a prune. "Ah ah, they're cold." she winces.

"Sorry," Heloise curls her toes away immediately. Marianne follows them and curls them back into hers.

"Feels good?" she asked.

"Very," Heloise heaved.

The doorknob half turns and stops. Marianne's heart skipped a beat. _Had she perhaps-misheard?_ It turns again, this time stopping with a loud click. Marianne and Heloise catch each other eyes, frightened. 

It turns again a couple more times furiously before a voice accompanies it. "Heloise wake up. It's time."

They both spring up from the bed, their heart racing in alarm. 

"I'm up" Heloise shouted in response. 

"Why is the door closed? Open it!"

She tries to answer calmly but her voice wavers anyway, "I'll be down in a minute," 

"Heloise open the door" her mother commanded.

"Moooooooooommm" Heloise is half begging and completely gushing with anxiety.

"Open the door RIGHT NOW!" Colette is firm and adamant. At least Marianne now knew where Heloise got those genes from.

Heloise looked at Marianne, blood drained from her face with panic written all over it.

"You need to hide," she said.

They both are off the bed in a jiffy. Marianne, without a second thought, tried to roll under the bed. Unfortunately, the height is a tad bit too low for her. 

"Shit" Heloise murmured.

Heloise's eyes dart to the closet. Marianne's eyes follow hers.

"I'm not going back in there," Marianne says firmly.

Heloise shrugs. "It's too tiny for you anyway.

"Any other ideas?" 

The knocks have turned into rampant and loud impatient banging. Marianne thought Mrs Marchand might just manage to break the door down if they don't open it soon.

"The balcony."

Marianne nods and scuttles, sliding the door to the balcony. 

"Stay low." Heloise draws the curtain in front of her which darkens the room. 

Heloise's eyes struggled to adjust to the sudden absence of light as walked to the door. She pressured her body on the door, unlocks and half opens it. Her mother throws it wide open with full force. Heloise is thrown off guard and almost falls. Her mother marches in like a soldier on a mission.

"What took you so long?" Mrs Marchand paced about the room.

"Do you expect me to fly out of bed or something?" she retorts.

Her mother pays no attention. "Why are the blinds still closed?"

"Too bright" Heloise answers.

Her mother tutted and took a step towards the curtains. Before Heloise can react Collette has begun pulling it away, making way for more sunlight.

"Mommmmmmmm" Heloise leaps towards her mother and grabs the gown that she's wearing. But its already too late. The blinds are wide open and they can see the whole balcony. 

Heloise's heart stopped beating. She was shaking uncontrollably. Not because Marianne was there in the balcony. But because _she wasn't there._

"Ah that's better" her mother exclaims and proceeds to slide the door open.

"I can take it from here" Heloise pleaded a knee bend away from falling on her mother's feet.

"Very well," Her mother saunters to the door like a snail, taking an eternity to leave the room. Or that's what it felt like to Heloise. "Come down soon," She said and shut the door.

Heloise's heart is racing like a formula one car. She has no time to lose. _Where the heck is Marianne?_

Heloise is lighting fast between the time she locks the door and springs on the balcony in search of her.

"Marianne!" she yells.

"Here," said a meek voice. But there's no Marianne anywhere to accompany it.

"Where?!"

"Down. The railing!" Her voice was oozing in trepidation "Hurry!"

Heloise leans down on the railing. And there she is. Looking at Heloise with big watery eyes. Hanging on the ledge by the tip of her fingers, red and swollen, gradually losing grip hold.

"Pull me up!" Marianne wailed from the pain in her arms.

"Hold on!" Heloise puts one her leg on the other side of the railing. She anchors herself by placing her foot between the railing and the balcony. Bending down carefully, making sure not to lose her own footing and she holds Marianne by her wrist. "Give me your hand."

Marianne slid her hand into Heloise. 

"Ready?" Heloise said. "I'm going to pull you up. One. Two. Three."

Heloise groans and cries as she utilizes her full strength to haul Marianne. 

"Why. Are. You. So. Heavy" The teeth in her jaws clashed against each other.

"Gravity" Marianne offers an explanation.

"Don't science me right now." Heloise was huffing and puffing like a madwoman. "Come onnnnnnn" 

Marianne puts one of her foot on the balcony and tries to get herself up. Marianne's triceps are burning. Her abdominal muscles are screaming for a respite. One of her legs comes up first, followed by her torso. Marianne pushes herself up, straining her quads and her calf muscle and is soon up, balancing herself on her toes. It takes seconds before she's on the other side of the railing, safe, gasping and heaving heavily for air. She flutters her fingers in the air. Her fingers feel as if they've been run over by a hot piece of iron.

Heloise crosses over to Marianne's side, the tendrils of Heloise's hair is sticking on her head like the flames of a raging fire. And Heloise is maniacally mad at Marianne.

"Are you bonkers!?!" Heloise scolded, her pitch high and piercing. 

"What else was I supposed to do? Just stand there and give morning greetings to your mother?!!"

She chose not to answer her and instead took Marianne's hands in hers and begun her examination. "Your palms are red." Heloise massaged the rough worked palms concernedly against soft ones. "You're so stupid."

"Stupid for you." Marianne had a radiant smug look that overshadowed the anxious and vexed blue eyes.

"Don't" Heloise warned.

Marianne breaks into a giggle. Heloise doesn't join her. 

Marianne gently punches Heloise's shoulder. "Come on. Loosen up." 

"You could have died. Or worse been injured!" 

"So you think death is worse than an injury?"

"Considering the height you were suspended from, you could have easily broken your ankles or your knees. And that means at least three months spent on healing, which equates to NO PLAYING!"

"Bah," Marianne spat playfully. "An exaggeration." But Marianne knew it was true. It was quite a long drop below and there was a good chance she might have injured herself. She'd been scared to death and was hanging on due to pure fight mode from her adrenaline rush.

"Believe me. It is."

"Have you broken any part of your body?"

"I broke my right ankle when I was fourteen. It was a ligament tear. Some stupid kid came in between when I was going for a smash. Took me about four months to be restored to full health."

"Ouch. That must have hurt."

"Yeah. It's not pretty. So please." Heloise looks at her with serious intention. "Do not do that again. Ever."

"Yes ma'am" Marianne sloppily saluted her. 

Heloise just rolls her eyes and sighs. "We need to get ready,"

\---

Heloise packed toiletries into her bag including extras for Marianne. Toothbrush, toothpaste, a bar of soap and a towel. Marianne has in the meantime changed into a fresh pair of shirt, shorts and socks. Heloise also lends Marianne her old pair of shoes, grey with hot pink stripes. 

"And this is exactly why I don't throw my old pair of shoes away" Heloise has a contented smile on her face.

Marianne looks up from the shoelaces that she's tying "To lend it to your girlfriend?" 

"Precisely" 

"What's the time?" Marianne asks, tightening the bowknot in her shoelaces.

"To leave," Heloise replied.

"So," Marianne stands up. "How do we get past your mother?"

"I have a plan" Heloise smiles.

\---

Marianne followed Heloise as they furtively make their way down the staircase. There's noisy clanking out the utensils emerging from the kitchen. Marianne can hear the whistle of the pot probably brewing a morning cup of coffee.

"She's in the kitchen. Go! Go!" Heloise motions frantically.

Marianne dashes across the hallway to the broom cupboard. She hides behind the door and closes it slightly leaving space for peering through the thin gap. She can see Heloise give her a thumbs up. 

Heloise yells, "Mom! I can't find my favourite shirt! Can you help me?" 

"Did you check on the third shelf?" 

"I did"

"The drying area?" 

"Yes," she said impatiently.

"Did you put it in the machine for a wash?"

"Of course, I did."

The blaring noise from the kitchen stops and Collette appears from the kitchen and joins her daughter. They both make their way upstairs disappear around the turn.

Marianne quickly opens the cupboard and sprints out through the front door. She makes sure to close it behind her noiselessly, _unlike the last time_. Marianne doesn't stop there. She sprints through the lines of trees till the end of the block as far away from Heloise's house as possible. Once she's out of sight, she slows down her pace and starts searching for the bus stop which Heloise had mentioned would be nearby. It didn't take her long to spot it and took an empty seat. 

The bus stop, though empty, was quite noisy due to the bakery which had woken up early to bake their morning batch of fresh food. The aroma of freshly baked bread flooded Marianne's windpipe and settled itself in her lungs in a fraction of a second. The result? Her stomach began rumbling and begging for some of those lavishly buttered croissants, crunchy bagels with ham and cheese and to down with some freshly squeezed cup of sweet orange juice. She hadn't eaten anything since midday the previous day and her hunger was raving. Oh, how she wished she could buy some good soul-filling food. Alas, she had no money on her since Heloise had offered to bring her things in her bag.

Her eyes turned to the direction of Heloise's house and searched for any trace of her. And just where the road sloped, a tiny head with golden hair, shining under the rays of the sun, appeared. Marianne had no patience to wait for Heloise to join her. She sprinted towards Heloise till she was by her side and she slipped her hand into Heloise's.

"That went well," Marianne remarked as they resumed their walking towards the stop. "What an excellent diversion!"

"I almost thought it wouldn't work."

"It worked beautifully."

Heloise chuckled as her eyes turned up like a crescent moon. "I was amazed she found my shirt so quickly, considering I'd hid it under the huge pile of clothes. You saw it with your own eyes!"

"Mother's are basically a Merlin when it comes to this. God knows how they manage to magically find clothes out of nowhere."

"I agree" she nodded her head. 

They'd reached the bus stop by now. Marianne's eyes automatically darted inside the bakery. "Food," she said unconsciously, her eyes all googly.

"Can you give me my purse?" she asked Heloise politely. 

\---

The doors of the bakery flung open. Marianne and Heloise stepped out, each with a bag in their hand. Marianne had a massive smile on her face just thinking about the King's breakfast that her stomach was going to luxuriate in. And the icing atop the cake? She had Heloise to share it with. 

They both chose a table and outside the bakery and took their seats. They faced each other while they chomped on their food, occasionally stopping to engage in a merry banter with about series of escapes that'd happened this morning. 

"I thought we were absolutely screwed when she opened the blinds"

"I'm glad I had my ears open,"

"How did you even manage to hang on for so long??"

Marianne flashed her biceps, "I am very strong" 

"You got none" Heloise jested.

Marianne blew her an uncivil raspberry with her tongue out and they both broke into peals of laughter.

Heloise shook her head as Marianne downed the glass of fresh orange juice, her eyes closed as she relished soothing liquid diminishing her dehydration. She placed the cup on the table, crossed her arms and looked up to the sky. Blue with clouds like pancakes arranged in multiple arrays. Almost like stepping stones to a magical faraway land. 

She glanced at Heloise, her almond eyes as blue as the sky above them, gleaming with a childlike curiosity. 

"What are you thinking?" Marianne asked.

"You. Me. Breakfast. We should do this more often," she said with a smile.

Marianne stood up and patted Heloise's shoulder, "We should."

Heloise cleaned her hands on the napkin and stood up, as tall as Marianne. 

"Hold on a second" Marianne held her by the shoulders. "Is it just me or have you become taller than me??"

"I have always been taller than you" Heloise chuckled. 

"No way!" Marianne exclaimed in shock. "We're getting our heights checked first thing today in school."

"Still doesn't erase the fact taller than you" Heloise teased.

The bus entered the bus stop and honked signalling its arrival.

"We'll see about that," Marianne said as she dragged Heloise inside the bus.


End file.
